As Rich as Molasses
by WatchOverDurinsSons
Summary: Fili leads a completely normal life (at least, it's normal for him,) until he crosses paths with a certain brunette, who is on a mission to find his only living relative - his Uncle Thorin. Little do the two of them know that their lives are more intricately twined than they had first assumed. (M/M, Modern AU)
1. Honey

Chapter One

Honey

"Oh, lord. You have _got_ to take a look at my next appointment. I've really lucked out this time. He's gorgeous."

Fili glanced over at his red headed friend, and fellow tattoo-artist, Tauriel. She had just been out into the lobby of the tattoo parlor, to greet her next guest, and now she was beginning to set up her work station with various inks and tattoo guns. Fili knew it was unnecessary to make the poor guy wait while she did so, but she would never miss a chance to brag to Fili about her good looking clientele.

"I'm sure he is," he replied, setting down the book that he had been reading. "And feel free to do all the flirting that you deem necessary, because I'm going to go on break."

Tauriel, with her long red hair, charcoal-lined doe eyes, slender frame, and multitude of tattoos and piercings, was usually able to snag any male that stepped foot into the shop. The problem was that her interest in the men usually dwindled to nothing by the end of her appointment, and she claimed that she was still waiting for Mr. Perfect to step foot through that door. Fili wasn't sure if such a man existed.

She shot him a pout. "You're only leaving so that you don't have to be subjected to my witty and charming conversations."

"Precisely," he nodded, standing up from his chair.

"What if he's horribly boring, though?" she questioned, worriedly. "What if he doesn't talk at all and it's awkward and quiet throughout the entire appointment? I need you here to provide conversation."

"And I don't have anyone booked for another hour and a half," he continued on, as if she hadn't spoken at all. "I'll see you then."

He left their shared work-space before she could say anything more, and made his way up towards the front desk, where Legolas was leaning with his chin sat solemnly on his hand, staring at a boy in the waiting area. Fili gave Tauriel's client a once-over, from his mahogany brown hair to his converse-clad feet, and couldn't help but silently agree with Tauriel about the guy's good looks, before turning to Legolas.

"Don't worry," Fili stated, patting the blonde on his shoulder, pulling him out of whatever thoughts he'd been dwelling on. "She'll come around soon enough."

Legolas sighed, flicking a few platinum locks over his shoulder, an annoyed look still plastered on his flawless face. "It's been eight years. She'll always think of me as just her friend, even if I do somehow convince her that I'm _not gay._"

Fili couldn't help but let out a small chuckle, which didn't exactly sate his friend's foul mood. Fili had been friends with Tauriel and Legolas since he was a freshman in High School, and the two had always been inseparable, but for the majority of the friendship, Legolas had been pining over the red head, completely head over heels. As far as Fili knew, she was completely oblivious. "Like I said, she'll come around."

Legolas just rolled his eyes.

"Well, I'm going on break," Fili continued. "Do you want anything?"

"Going to the coffee shop?"

"Most likely."

Legolas straightened and sent the waiting brunette one last glare. "I'll take the biggest Vanilla Latte they have, with whipped cream and four extra shots of espresso."

Fili lifted an eyebrow at his friend before running his hands through his hair and pulling his honey-blonde locks back into a ponytail, using a hair tie that had been on his wrist. The tattoo parlor was fairly cool, but one glance told him the same couldn't be said for the summer weather that awaited him outside, and since the coffee shop wasn't too far away, he planned on walking. "Is that it? Sure you don't need some heroin or maybe a small bit of cocaine? I'm sure I could make it happen."

"Ha. Ha. I'm going to need the sugar and caffeine if I want to make it through _this_ day," Legolas retorted.

Fili shook his head, muttering something about white girls, which earned him a small slap to the back of his head as he turned to leave, chuckling all the way to the door. As he left, he gave the brunette one final glance, locking eyes with the boy for a moment, who was staring curiously up at him as he left. The stirring depths of the chestnut brown orbs that he was met with shocked him for a moment, but he just shook his head and pushed through the shop's door, the small bell attached to it tinkling as he did.


	2. Molasses

Chapter Two

Molasses

"I need to get a job," Kili sighed, chewing on his bottom lip out of nervous habit. "I can't just live off of you and your brothers forever. I have to start making money, and I need to find my uncle."

Ori, Kili's best friend, nodded in understanding. The small, mousy-haired boy had been his closest friend since he had started grade school, and he always seemed to know what he was thinking. "I know you're itching to do something productive, Kili. But you don't have to rush into anything," he said in his small voice. "Dori doesn't mind having you around. You're like another brother to us."

Kili was currently staying in a room at the Bed and Breakfast that Ori's brother, Dori, owned. It had been in their family for some years, and now Dori, Nori and Ori, the three brothers, all lived and worked there, although from what Kili knew, Ori didn't like it much and was searching for a different place to work. He always complained about how work and home shouldn't be one and the same.

"I know, Ori," he replied, "but I just feel like it's what I need to do."

Just then Dori walked into the kitchen, where they were sitting, and gave the boys a curious glance. His grey hair was pulled back in a knot, and he was juggling grocery bags, which Ori quickly helped him settle on the counter, all while the older man eyed Kili curiously.

"What the matter, lad? You look a bit disgruntled," he said.

Kili sighed, for what felt like the hundredth time that day, and tried to perk up and appear more cheerful to ease the other's worries. "I'm fine," he replied. "I'm just ready to start searching for my Uncle. And I was just telling Ori about how I would like to find a job, also."

Dori looked thoughtful for a moment and then suddenly clapped his hands together in excitement. "Ooo, I know just the thing! There's a coffee shop nearby that is looking for a new barista. I'm friends with the owner and baristas there. You could trot on down there and let them know I sent you. I'm sure they would at least give you an interview."

Kili grinned, his smile wide and bright. "Do you really think so? What should I wear? When can I go?"

Dori and Ori both chuckled at Kili's obvious enthusiasm, and Dori checked the clock on the stove, which read 2:49 pm, scrunching his round nose. "It's still early. I'm sure you could head down there now."

Kili looked down at himself. He was wearing dark-wash skinny jeans, a long sleeved, olive-green thermal shirt, and brown Toms. It wasn't exactly the proper outfit to wear to a job interview, not to mention the silver hoop through his nose and his hairstyle, which was long and unruly. He swallowed. "Dori, I'm not suitable for a job. Look at me! This ridiculous hairdo, piercings, and I haven't anything to wear. I've never gone anywhere nice. I've never had the need for proper clothes."

Dori patted the youth on his shoulder, smiling softly. "Kili, there's no need to change. Just go as you are, and I promise it'll be fine. Bilbo will like you more if you look and act like yourself. That's the type of man he is."

"Are you sure?" Kili question, glancing down at himself one more time.

"Positive," the elder stated.

Kili hopped off of the stool he was sat on, whooping excitedly, and ran into the bathroom, just to make sure he looked as put together as possible. He dug through the bathroom drawers until he found a hair tie, and then proceeded to pull his long, dark hair into an attempted bun. It was kind of messy, since Kili wasn't used to such hairstyles, but he thought it looked better than leaving it down, particularly since he was going for a job in the food-industry. If he did get the job, he'd have to get used to wearing his hair up, which always looked a bit strange with his one shaved side, but he was willing to deal with strange updos, as long as he didn't have to part with his long locks completely.

When he exited the bathroom and went back into the kitchen, Dori held out a small piece of journal paper for him to take. A name and address was scribbled on the sheet in loopy handwriting, and luckily Kili recognized the street name, which would make his trek a bit easier. Then he thanked Dori again and gave Ori a quick hug before bounding out of the front door.

"Hi, I'm looking for a man named Bilbo Boggins. Do you know him?"

The barista behind the register gave him a crooked grin, and there was a sort of mischievous sparkle in his eyes that made Kili instantly warm up to the man. "You mean Mister Baggins? Aye, lad, 'course I know 'im. He's the manager and my boss," he replied, in a thick Irish accent.

Kili blushed, knowing it was stupid to have even asked. Obviously he was the manager. "Um… well," he cleared his throat, "a man named Dori sent me here to talk to him. He said you guys were hiring."

If at all possible, the man's smile grew wider. "He's not around at the momen', but I'll give 'im a ring and tell 'im you're here if you want to take a seat an' wait for 'im."

Kili nodded and took a seat at one of the small tables in the quaint little coffee shop. It was one of the cozier coffee shops that Kili had ever been in, but that wasn't saying much, considering he had only ever been to Starbucks, which was always too crowded to feel cozy. The lights of Erebor Coffee cast a warm glow, reflecting off the various art work hanging on the walls: paintings and drawings of everything ranging from mountains to starlit forests.

"Mister Bilbo is on his way," the barista said as he approached where he was sitting, drawing Kili's attention from his surroundings. "The name's Bofur, by the way. Can I get you anything to drink, or maybe a pastry of sorts?"

Kili looked shyly at the man. "Nice to meet you. My name is Kili, and uhhh… sorry, but I didn't bring any money."

Bofur laughed, seemingly finding endless mirth at the boys' embarrassment. "It's on the house, laddie. Don' worry about it."

Kili flushed and stared down at his arms resting on the table. "Oh, umm… I'll just take some black tea then."

"Jus' black tea?"

Kili nodded his head and the older man left him to his own thoughts again. When he returned he didn't stay long, just long enough to set the drink down and watch Kili take a sip of it.

"This isn't black tea!" he exclaimed, taking another sip of the creamy drink, attempting to keep in a content sigh, which he failed miserably at. It had a slight bitterness to it, but it was also milky and slightly foamy, warming Kili from head to toe. "What on earth is this? It's delicious!"

Bofur nearly doubled over, laughing at Kili's expression, his messy, brown braids flopping around. "That there 's nothin' bu' a plain ol' cappuccino. No' anythin' fancy."

Kili raised his eyebrows high before laughing at his own silliness and didn't bother telling the other man that he had never had anything so good in his life. He wasn't used to such comforts. The orphanage he'd grown up in definitely didn't have a milk steamer of any sort. "Thank you," he eventually breathed.

Bofur tipped his head, giving him one last grin before going back to work.

Kili sat alone for a while, but it wasn't long before the manager, Bilbo, showed up, taking a seat across from Kili, startling him.

"Bilbo Baggins," the man introduced, his unruly reddish-brown curls and easy smile making it easy for Kili to relax, "but you can just call me Bilbo."

Mr. Baggins – or Bilbo, he should say – had a sort of fussy air about him, between his perfectly-pressed clothing, to the clipboard clutched under one arm, but it was not at all unfriendly. Kili had a feeling that you wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of him, though, and how he got this feeling just moments after meeting the man, he had no idea.

"Kili Durin," he replied, reaching a hand out to shake the other mans'.

He didn't know what else to say, so he sat quietly while Bilbo worked on rearranging his papers and settled in, soon nursing his own warm beverage. Kili wondered what it was, since he had only said he wanted 'his usual,' but didn't feel like it was proper of him to ask.

"So, Kili," Bilbo began, smiling at him once more. "What brings you to Erebor Coffee?"

"Well," he began, sitting up as straight as he could, "my friend's brother told me that you might be looking for someone, and I've been really wanting a job for a while now, so I thought it was a good opportunity."

"Would this be your first job?"

"Yes," Kili replied shyly, shifting uncomfortably. The orphanage's strict rules had made it nearly impossible to have a job, so he hadn't bothered, deciding to wait until he could move out.

"That's perfectly fine," Bilbo nodded, writing on his clipboard. The scratching of the pen on paper didn't help the brunette's nerves. "I'm assuming you're seventeen or eighteen? Yes?"

"I just turned eighteen," he responded, perking up, always excited to talk about his age, able to remind himself time and time again that he was now an adult and was free to do what he wanted and live as he pleased.

"And who was it that told you about this job?" the older man questioned, nose twitching a bit as he looked up. The man was beginning to remind Kili of some sort of tiny, woodland creature.

"His name is Dori. I'm good friends with his younger brother-"

"Ori," Bilbo finished for him, beaming. "I know their family. My partner and I worked hard to help them get that bed and breakfast. I'm glad he sent you. We are quite picky about who we hire here."

Kili blushed again, wishing he had better control over his embarrassment, and felt suddenly self conscious. If they were picky about whom they hired, why would they ever hire him? He wasn't dressed nicely, he could hardly make eye contact with strangers, and he…

Kili's negative thoughts trailed off when Bilbo spoke again. "Calm down, child. I can practically see your worries radiating off of you."

"It's just… I don't really feel as though I'm making a very good first impression. I didn't have anything to wear, since this is pretty much what my entire wardrobe looks like, and I didn't have time to go get anything new."

"I don't care about that," Bilbo said, leaning back in his chair whilst jotting a few things down on his clipboard of papers. "We just like to keep our workers within friends and family. It gives the place more of a family-owned feel, which I find people rather like when it comes to coffee shops."

"Is it family owned?" Kili asked.

Bilbo looked thoughtful for a moment before nodding. "Technically, yes. Mr. Oakenshield, the man who owns it, is a multi-business owner, but it's his friends and family that run all of the business' he owns, so I would say it's family owned."

Once again, Kili was lost for words, so the two sat in a comfortable silence while Bilbo scribbled a few more things.

"Why don't you just tell me your story, Kili?"

The younger boy looked up at Bilbo, one eyebrow lifted in question. He didn't understand what the older man was asking. Tell his story? Kili didn't really have any stories to tell, and honestly, he didn't see how a story would be relevant to a job interview. "Sorry?"

"My apologies," Bilbo replied. "What I meant was why don't you tell me about your life? Your current living arrangements, your past, maybe any skills you have. Since you haven't filled out a job application, I don't have that to refer to, but I'd rather hear you tell me about yourself in person, anyway."

Kili swallowed and nodded slowly, attempting to buy himself a little bit of time. The only ones that really knew much about him and his past was Ori and his brothers. He had met this man a mere ten minutes ago, and didn't know where to begin, or if he even _wanted _to tell the other man about his life.

"Is something wrong?" Bilbo asked when Kili didn't reply.

"No," he said, shaking his head rapidly. A few strands of hair came loose from his bun, and he tucked them behind his ear. "I'm just not all that comfortable with my past."

A sympathetic look crossed Bilbo's face, and he reached over to pat the youth on his shoulder. "If it's difficult for you to talk about, you don't have to, but you should know that I'd always be willing to listen, and whatever is spoken between you and I right now is purely confidential."

Confidential? It sounded like a good offer. Kili was always pining for someone he could spill his feelings to. Sure, he had Ori, but there were just some things his young friend didn't understand. His life thus far had been easy. He didn't understand Kili's hardships.

"Okay," he began meekly, wrapping his hands around the warm cup in front of him, finding a small comfort in it. "Where should I start?"

Bilbo sat down his things, and leaned forward, elbows propped on the table. Kili had his undivided attention. "How about the beginning?"

Bilbo Baggins turned out to be a perfect listener, so much so that Kili almost liked telling the man about his entire life. He gasped at all the right parts, comforted Kili at the right moments, and never judged or scoffed. He made Kili feel cared for and appreciated.

The brunette started from the time when his parents had been in a tragic car accident. Kili hadn't even been born yet, but a team of doctors at the hospital had been able to save him from his dying mother's womb. Bilbo told him that he too knew of a couple that had been killed in an accident, the both of them reliving such horrible tragedies together. After that, Kili had gone on to explain that his mother didn't have anyone listed as her next of kin, and after a few difficulties and lot of confusion, Kili had ended up being adopted.

Bilbo had seemed very pleased when Kili told him he'd been adopted, only to be shot down moments later when the teenager explained that he had only been with that family for a short two years before he ended up in the orphanage that he had grown up in.

"How awful," Bilbo sighed, clasping one of Kili's hands in both of his own. "I have an adopted son, and I wouldn't give him up for anything in the entire world. I hate to see children grow up in orphanages."

Shrugging, Kili replied, "It wasn't that bad. I had a good time all through school, and made a couple of good friends, both inside the orphanage and out. It could've been a lot worse. And as soon as I turned 18 I moved into Dori's Bed and Breakfast, which is fine, but I feel like I should be pitching in somehow, which is why I want a job."

"That's the spirit," Bilbo smiled, releasing the younger's hands. "And the job is as good as yours, if you still want it."

Kili's chestnut eyes grew wide with excitement and pure joy, causing Bilbo to chuckle lightly. "Do you mean it?"

"Of course!" he smiled. "You'll fit right in. I just know everyone will love you. So come back tomorrow at 11:00, and we will get you all set up and begin your training."

"Are you going to be training me?"

Bilbo shook his head, gesturing towards the counter, where Bofur was still cheerfully helping customers. "Bofur will probably train you, but I'll pop in now and again to check how things are going. I manage a bookstore too, so I can't be here all the time."

"Thank you so much," Kili threw his arms around the man, suddenly realizing how small he actually was. Kili, who was about 6'1", towered over the small man, which only made him like Bilbo more, for some reason.

"There, there," Bilbo patted the boy on his back, hoping Kili wouldn't pick him up in his excitement. Bilbo had never come to terms with his height and often felt embarrassed about it. "It's really my pleasure."

Thankfully, the brunette backed off, grinning so widely that it appeared his face might crack, before he shook Bilbo's hand enthusiastically and bounded out the door, waving goodbye to Bofur as he did.

Bilbo just shook his head, smiling to himself, and went to finish Kili's paperwork and get him all set up and ready to work.


	3. Homeward Bound

Chapter Three

Homeward-Bound

_Fili _

Two weeks after Tauriel's gorgeous brunette babe, as she liked to call the young client, she still would not shut up about him. To Fili's knowledge, she hadn't seen the boy again since then, but she was certain that they were soul mates, much to his annoyance. It wasn't doing wonders for Legolas' foul mood, either.

"Hey, Leggy, are we still having dinner at your place on Friday?" she asked. It was closing time on a Wednesday, and she and Fili had just finished cleaning up. Legolas sat perched on the front desk, flipping irritably through a magazine.

"Yes," he replied, giving a particularly violent flip to the page he was on, succeeding only in tearing it. "And don't call me that."

She giggled and ran a slender hand over his perfect hair. "You secretly love it. Are you sure your father is alright with us coming over? He hasn't seemed overly fond of me recently."

Legolas sat down his magazine, giving her a disbelieving look. "He likes you just as much as he always has. Of course it's fine. You know you both have a place in my home whenever you need it."

She looked unconvinced but dropped the subject. And Fili took that as his cue to say goodbye and head home. He normally walked, but the weather had looked unforgiving that morning, so he'd driven to work in his dad's Jeep Rubicon. Fili didn't have his own car, since he had totaled his last one a couple years prior and still refused to get a new one. He didn't really trust himself with a car, but Thorin had insisted he take the Jeep today, claiming that he was acting ridiculous about the entire situation.

Thorin had been right, as always. The car was parked just behind the shop, and by the time Fili got the doors unlocked and climbed inside he was moderately wet from the hammering rain. He turned on the car and the heater, even though he knew the car wouldn't warm up by the time he got home, and pulled out of the lot, gravel crunching under the tires.

After an uneventful drive he stumbled inside, wiping rain from his eyes and shaking it from his hair, much to Bilbo's displeasure.

"Fili! What on earth? I just finished mopping the floor."

"Sorry, Bilbo," he replied, shucking off his coat. He hung it on the row of hooks next to their front door, and then took a step towards the kitchen, but that's as far as he made it.

"Ah, ah, ah!" the small man tutted, stopping him in his tracks. "You take those muddy boots off, young man. If I didn't know better, I would think you weren't scared of me anymore, the way you come traipsing in here, leaving a mess in your wake."

Fili lifted his hands in defense, trying hard not to smile at the small man. Fili was only about an inch taller than Bilbo, being 5'6", but Bilbo was far more slender, causing him to appear much smaller. "Don't worry yourself, Bilbo. I'm still terrified of you."

"Good!" he huffed, shuffling back into the kitchen, feet bare.

Fili chuckled and unlaced his muddy boots, depositing them next to the front door, and then followed Bilbo. Both he and Thorin were in the kitchen, mulling about and doing random things to prepare for dinner. Fili took a seat at the counter to watch, fascinated by the whole ordeal. Thorin wasn't much of a cook, dare he say crap at it, actually, but recently he had taken up the task, trying to prove he could be just as good as Bilbo. Fili highly doubted that it would ever happen. Bilbo was the best cook he had ever known.

"Maker, Thorin! What on earth are you doing?" the tiny man exclaimed, gesturing towards the onion Thorin was chopping. "Do you have _any _idea what you are doing?"

Thorin gave a great sigh and set down the knife. "I'll never be any good at this. It's too hard."

"Says the business man," Bilbo grinned. "I could never do your job. That's too stressful for my liking."

Thorin snorted and washed his hands, before taking a seat next to Fili, allowing Bilbo to finish his work on the onion. "You do the majority of my job for me, you know. In fact, you practically do all the work."

Bilbo waved his hand in dismissal, dumping the chopped onion into a sizzling pan. "Nonsense. You have to handle the banking and all the tossers trying to take your businesses from you. There's enough for you to deal with on your plate. Just let me do the cooking."

Thorin gave one of his rare, kind smiles, and turned to his adopted son. "How was your day, Fili?"

He shrugged. "The same as always, I suppose. Nothing too interesting happened. I had a few boring clients, Legolas pined over Tauriel, she flounced around, acting like her usual self, going on about the same client she had two weeks ago. Am I missing anything?"

Thorin chuckled and lifted his eyebrows.

"Oh yes," Fili nodded, as if he'd just remembered something important. "And Dwalin stopped by and poked fun at us for a while."

Dwalin was Thorin's best friend, and he managed the tattoo shop, since Bilbo already had to deal with the coffee shop and bookstore. He would come by every once in a while to do whatever work he needed to do, make sure everyone was doing their job, and then spend a couple hours bothering the young artists. Everyone took it really well, although occasionally Dwalin did a good job of ruffling Legolas' feathers, but that wasn't much of a feat.

"Is that a good or bad thing?" Thorin asked.

"Dwalin bothering us, or my day being completely normal?"

"The normality of your day, I suppose."

Fili sighed and drug his finger across the counter in a figure eight thoughtfully. "Good, I guess. At least it wasn't a bad day, but I do wish that something exciting would happen now and again. It's so dull at the shop sometimes."

Both Thorin and Bilbo nodded in understanding, but Fili didn't want to talk about himself anymore, so before anyone could respond he said, "How were your guys' days?"

Bilbo answered first. "I stopped by the coffee shop to see how our new barista was doing today, and I'm pleased to announce that everyone loves him, including customers!"

"You're a good employer," Fili replied.

Bilbo blushed slightly and gave Fili a light pat on the cheek. "Always such a charmer."

"I try my hardest," Fili replied, smiling warmly and his second father. For years people had questioned Fili which of his parents he looked to as a mother figure, and time and time again he had tried to explain to them that neither one of them were like a mother. They were both men, they were just two different people. He had two dads. And he liked that.

"I actually think I might go down to the coffee shop tomorrow and draw for a while," Fili continued. "The atmosphere helps me to focus. Will the new guy be working tomorrow? I'm interested to meet him."

Bilbo nodded, turning back to the stove. "I believe so. He works in the afternoon and evening, until closing time. Also, I'll probably be there all day doing some end-of-the month management stuff, since it's almost June."

"It's my day off," Fili said, "and there's probably other, more important things I could do, but I haven't had any nice, quiet, 'me' time for a long while."

"And you deserve it," Thorin noted. "You've done really well for the last couple of years. You're a good worker and a great kid."

"I'm not much of a kid anymore," he mumbled, to Bilbo's great frustration.

"Don't you dare talk about leaving us again!" he exclaimed in a shrill voice.

"Bilbo, I'm twenty-two years old."

"And our little boy! You can stay here as long as you need. You don't have to grow up so quickly!"

Then, to Fili's utter horror, the smaller of his two fathers made his way around the counter and smothered the blonde in a tight hug and multiple kisses to his face and the top of his head.

"Bilbo!" he cried, trying to push the shockingly strong man away. "Stop it! Stop! Have mercy!"

"Only if you promise not to leave home anytime soon. I'm not ready for it!" he shouted, all while Thorin laughed over the commotion.

"Fine! Fine, I promise I won't. Just let me go. You're going to give me nightmares."

Finally freed from Bilbo's arms, Fili raced out of the kitchen and up the stairs to his room, the other two smiling at his retreating form.

Fili awoke late the next morning, having allowed himself some much-needed extra sleep. He'd nearly worked himself to death lately, finding it to be the perfect distraction from the distressed thoughts he usually had to deal with.

He rolled to check the clock that sat on his nightstand, to find that it was nearly noon. Shocked, he flung himself out of his warm bed and climbed into the shower, scrubbing himself down and rinsing off as quickly as possible.

He was eager to spend a day at the coffee shop, drawing. It used to be something he commonly did on weekends, when he had been in college, but after his car accident he'd dropped out and gotten his job, no longer having (or bothering to make) the time for himself to do so.

After his shower, Fili pulled his hair back into a ponytail, to keep it out of his face, dressed, grabbed his supplies, and left the house. Since the weather was much nicer than the previous day, he carried his things in a backpack and walked to the small shop, enjoying the sun warming his pale skin. It was nearly summer time, and he couldn't wait for the healthy-looking glow it would provide for his skin.

The moment Fili stepped foot inside the coffee shop, his brain seemed to stop working. His eyes couldn't have possible grown any wider without falling out of his face. There, standing behind the register, was Tauriel's gorgeous brunette babe.

Remembering how to move his feet, he stalked towards the counter. "It's you!"

The other boy gave him an odd look, before boldly, exclaiming, "It's me!"

"What?" The blonde spoke.

"What?" The brunette countered.

Fili could not have been more confused. "Uhhh… you were at the tattoo shop the other day. My friend, Tauriel, was your artist."

"Right," the brunette responded, suddenly turning an alarming shade of red. "I thought you were just a stranger, trying to mess with me, but now I know who you are. I didn't recognize you without all the black clothing."

Fili sighed, grinning bashfully. About a year ago, Tauriel had convinced him to start wearing darker colors to work, claiming that he didn't look enough like a tattoo artist, considering he dressed in mostly red and beige, and didn't actually have any visible tattoos. Now, apparently, people couldn't recognize him when he dressed like his normal self.

"I could say the same about you and that hairstyle of yours, but I guess that's the downside to the food industry."

"And you apparently choose to do the opposite, seeing as how yours is pulled back, and you're certainly not at work."

"It's warm outside. And I plan on drawing for the next few hours. I don't want it in my way."

"Oh? So you're an artist inside and outside of work."

The easy banter continued on for a couple of moments before another customer walked in, forcing Fili into ordering so he could get out of the way. He went with his usual – a Chai Latte with a shot of espresso. Then he thanked the barista and went to find a table.

An hour later he found himself invested in a charcoal drawing of a girl that was sitting on the opposite side of the shop, alongside all of the drawings he had done of other coffee shop patrons that were strewn about the table haphazardly. People were his favorite subject to draw, particularly with charcoal.

The girl was currently absorbed in a novel of some sort, ebony hair spilling over her shoulder and down her back. Every now and then she'd lift her left hand to bite at her nails, a look of deep concentration etched across her face…

"Hey, do you mind if I sit with you?"

Fili jumped, nearly tumbling out of his chair, and looked up to see the brunette boy.

"It's my break, and I don't want to sit alone, and you're the only person I know… even though I don't actually know you all that well. Heck, I don't even know your name."

Fili continued to stare at him, unsure of why he was at a loss for words. He could feel his mouth hanging open stupidly, as if he had been about to respond and then stopped, but couldn't bring himself to close it. The boy had taken off his apron and collared work shirt, let his hair down, and stood there in dark skinny jeans and a loose, billowy, blue tank top. Fili had a sudden itch to draw the boy.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to bother you. I'll, just, uhh, find somewhere else to sit."

He turned away, and suddenly the blonde snapped out of his daze, grabbing the other boy's arm. "No, it's fine. You're not bothering me at all."

"You sure?"

"Absolutely. My brain just isn't functioning properly today, I guess."

"I have those days," he responded, sitting down across from the blonde, before turning his gaze to the mess of drawings. "Wow, you're really good."

"Thank you," Fili murmured. He was used to being complimented. Everyone knew he was a decent artist. It was his art hanging around the coffee shop, after all, since Bilbo had insisted he show off some of Fili's work, but having this boy tell him he was good did something funny to his insides.

The boy smiled and extended his hand. "Kili."

"Pardon?" Fili replied, staring at the offered hand.

"My name," he clarified. "It's Kili."

Fili's azure eyes looked up to meet brown ones, and he shot his companion a look of pure disbelief. "You're kidding me, right?"

The brunette withdrew his hand, placing it in his lap, taken aback. "What do you mean? Of course I'm not kidding you. Why would I kid about my name?"

"It's really Kili?"

"As far as I'm aware."

"Ouch, no need to get sassy."

The other boy smiled again, reminding him of a child. There was a sort of youthful innocence in his face that Fili didn't often see. "Well, in that case, pleased to meet you. My name is Fili."

The brunette, Kili, gave him wide eyes for a moment before bursting into hysterics. "You really had me going there for a second! That would be crazy if our names were actually that similar!"

Fili scratched his head, not sure how to convince Kili that he was telling the truth. "It is. They are. I mean, that really is my name. That's why I thought you were kidding about _your _name."

"I see you two have met," a third voice, Bilbo's, entered the conversation, scaring both boys.

Fili stared hard at Bilbo for a moment, before replying, "Yes. We have. Would you care to explain why you didn't tell me the new barista has a name so similar to mine? You could've at least mentioned it. I mean, it's a _bit _interesting."

"Wait," Kili interjected. "You know each other?"

"Of course," Fili rolled his eyes. "He's my dad."

Kili looked dumbstruck, dark brows knitting together. "Really? You two don't look anything alike. And yeah," he said, turning to also stare at Bilbo, "why didn't you tell me that my name is so similar to your son's? It is quite a coincidence."

"I'm adopted," Fili said, answering the first of Kili's questions.

Bilbo took a seat, glancing between them. "Would you two just calm down? I didn't mention it to either of you, because it didn't really seem necessary. Is it a crime?"

"No," Kili replied. "I guess not."

"But it is interesting. Wouldn't you agree?" Fili added.

"Yes, yes of course it is, but 'Fili' isn't actually your birth name."

This was true. Thorin and Bilbo had adopted him shortly after he had turned six. He'd been put up for adoption just after being born, since his biological parents knew they didn't want him before he'd even come into the world, and the first family that had adopted him had been allowed to name him. Unfortunately, they hadn't been the greatest family and had cursed him with the name _Lindsay. _Said family had also decided to start making and selling crystal meth when he was five, which was how he ended up in a new home with the name Fili Oakenshield, a more suitable title for 'their strong little prince,' as Bilbo called him. "So? It's still my name, and Thorin chose it! That's even stranger!"

"He was doing his sister honor. Yours is one of Dis' favorite names. She said if she ever had a blonde she would name him Fili, a brunette and she would name him K…" Bilbo cut off abruptly, eyeing Kili with huge eyes.

Fili, too, turned to the slender boy and could see the wheels turning in his head. His brows were set deep in confusion. Fili opened his mouth to ask if Kili was alright, but the brunette didn't need to be asked.

"Dis…" he whispered, shifting his gaze down to the smooth wood of the table surface, "that was my mother's name."

Bilbo gasped, and he looked ready to respond, but he was also interrupted by the boy.

"And Thorin! That's Mr. Oakenshield's first name?"

Bilbo shut his mouth and hesitated before nodding slowly, as if he wasn't sure that Kili would want the statement to be true or not.

If Kili had reminded Fili of a child before, it was nothing compared to now. His large, deep brown eyes became glassy with unshed tears, his chin trembling in the attempt to hold himself together. Fili resisted the urge to reach over and hug the boy, thinking he probably didn't know the boy well enough to do so.

Bilbo clearly didn't feel that way, since he was instantly at Kili's side, giving him a tight hug.

"Don't be upset," he murmured, "you might be simply jumping to conclusions. It might all be a mistake."

When Kili spoke, his composure broke and fat tears tracked down his fair cheeks. "How?" he gasped, burying his face in his hands. "His sister's name is Dis – that was my mother's name. His name is Thorin Oakenshield – I know that my Uncle's initials are T.O; they're written on the back of a picture I have of him, and Fili is apparently a name she liked, which sounds a hell of a lot like 'Kili.' How could this _possibly _be a mistake?" He finished, panting, having not stopped once for air during his small outburst. Bilbo looked unsure of what to say. Fili, though he wasn't sure why, felt a sudden burst of outrage.

Scrambling, the blonde hurriedly began gathering his things, stuffing them into his backpack, muttering under his breath.

"Fili?" Bilbo asked. "What on earth are you doing?"

Instead of answering, the blonde replied, "Is dad at home?"

"I-I-I'd imagine so."

That was the end of the conversation. Fili gave the elder a curt nod, avoided looking at the youngest altogether, afraid of the sadness he knew he would find, and marched right out the door, homeward-bound.


	4. Found

Chapter Four

Found

Kili wasn't as sad as he knew he appeared to everyone else, but he found comfort in the small man's hug, so he didn't bother telling Bilbo that he was okay as they watched Fili's retreating form for a moment. In fact, Kili wasn't sad at all. His tears were a mixture of confusion, joy, anger and utter surprise, which, put together, were a bit overwhelming.

"I sort of fear for Thorin's life," Bilbo spoke suddenly, giving the youth a pat on his back.

Kili chuckled and wiped the tears from his face, Bilbo taking that as his cue to release him. "He seems a bit fierce."

Bilbo waved off the comment and snorted. "Fili? No, he's a very gentle boy. I haven't seen him that upset in quite some time." A short, troubled look crossed Bilbo's face, but it was gone before Kili could even begin to figure it out.

Kili eyed the drink that Fili had left behind, wondering what it tasted like. He hadn't tried many of the drinks yet, usually playing it safe and sticking with that delightful cappuccino. "Do you think he would care if I finished his drink?"

Bilbo looked startled for a moment, clearly thrown off by the random question, but soon his round face broke into a grin. "I doubt it. Though, it's probably cold by now."

Kili shrugged and sipped the drink anyway, delighted by its sweet and spicy flavor. He tried to remember what the blonde had ordered, and he was fairly certain it had been a Chai Latte.

"But what about you?"

"What about me?" Kili replied, looking up at Bilbo.

"How are _you _doing?" the elder asked. "This whole thing can't be easy on you."

Sighing, Kili rested his head on top of the table with a 'thunk,' and replied, "I'm fine. I'll be good once I wrap my head around this whole thing. I thought it would take me months to find my only living relative, and instead, his family found _me._"

"The credit still goes to you," Bilbo tilted his head in thought. "You were the one that decided to go get a job, and you simply managed to knock out two birds with a single stone. "

"Do you think he'll like me?" Kili wondered out loud, suddenly worried that his uncle wouldn't want to welcome the poor, orphan-boy into his family. Kili hadn't had the best education in the world, he wasn't planning on going to college, and he didn't have a very good job. He was completely useless.

"Of course he will!" Bilbo exclaimed. He eyed the young boy up and down for a moment, his hazel eyes alight with excitement. "Oh, now that I really look at you, I can see the family resemblance. You look very much like Thorin and his sister."

Kili cracked a watery smile at that and heaved a great sigh. "I should get back to work. My break is nearly over."

"Don't work yourself too hard, now," Bilbo chuckled. "Just take it easy today."

"I'll be fine," the brunette said, standing up, the hard legs of his chair scraping across the wooden floor as he pushed it back. "Working helps keep my mind off of things."

Bilbo gave Kili a light pat on the cheek before sitting back down at the now-empty table to do some paper work. As he did so, he nearly missed the crumpled piece of paper on the floor. He reached to pick it up and then spread it over the table, trying to smooth out as many creases as he could.

It was obviously a drawing that Fili must have started, but not much of it was finished. The only thing on the paper was an unrecognizable figure with long hair pulled back into a loose bun. After a moment of gazing at it, Bilbo decided he knew who it was supposed to be and glanced up at the brunette barista, who'd gone back to work, a sly smile spreading across his face.

_Fili_

Fili, arriving home, slung off his backpack next to the front door and wiped at the sweat on his face before striding into Thorin's study, assuming that's where the older man would be. When he found that his father was, in fact, not in there, he headed to the kitchen, growing more and more frustrated with every step.

Eventually he found himself standing back in the foyer, having thoroughly searched the entire house. His honey-locks were now spilling over his shoulders, since he had taken out his ponytail to card his fingers through his hair. He had no idea where else Thorin would be, and eventually settled for going outside to wait, in need of the fresh air.

"Thorin?" he exclaimed, stumbling out the back door.

The tall, dark-haired man was dressed in what could only be described as yard work clothes. He had on a pair of holey and faded blue-jeans and a dirty, worn, grey tee shirt. He stared at his adopted son, who stood stock-still in the doorway, his mouth slightly agape.

"What on earth are you doing?" the blonde questioned.

"Uhh," Thorin began, setting down the tin watering can he'd been holding, "I was just watering the plants."

Fili eyed the now-damp flower bed that ran alongside the back of the house, attempting not to laugh. "You're gardening?"

"No!" Thorin protested, a light pink flushing his cheeks. "I'm just watering them. They… er… looked a little bit dry."

Fili gave him a skeptical look.

"Don't tell Bilbo."

The younger of the two laughed and crossed his arms. "If I didn't know any better, I would say that you were enjoying yourself."

Thorin sighed, scratching absentmindedly at his dark beard. "It is pretty relaxing."

In the midst of finding his father in such a strange place, Fili had nearly forgotten about all his anger. Almost – but not quite. "You and I," he gestured to Thorin and then at himself, "need to have a chat."

Thorin's brows creased in worry. "Did something happen? Is something wrong?"

Fili shook his head, finally stepping over the threshold of their back door, to sit on their wooden porch swing. The day was growing later, and there was a cool breeze that washed over his heated skin. "You just have some explaining to do."

Thorin's expression grew even more confused, and he took a seat next to the young man. "I wasn't aware I'd done anything. What am I to explain?"

Looking at his adoptive father's hurt expression, he felt a little bit bad for the way he had approached him so suddenly. Fili also didn't know exactly how to breach the topic of Thorin's long-lost nephew and in the end decided to just go straight for the point. "You have a nephew. Did you know that?"

Thorin looked absolutely bewildered. "No, I-"

"He grew up without a family! You have a nephew, and you didn't even bother to take him in – to raise him right – and chose to let him suffer for eighteen years; your own flesh and blood!"

Thorin held up a hand to silence the youth, a stern look on his face. The blonde quieted instantly, knowing the elder's temper wasn't something he wanted to mess with. "Fili, I honestly haven't a clue what you are talking about."

"Your sister had a son," Fili said, his voice calmer than before. "You have a nephew. How can you possibly _not _know this?"

Thorin's mouth hung open, his eyes darting around as if to search for some sort of sign that would let him know that this wasn't real – that it was a joke. "That's not possible," he whispered.

Fili was just about to reply when they heard the front door open and close, and a few moments later a distressed–looking Bilbo walked out the back door, which Fili had never bothered to close. "What are you two-" his eyes widened as he took in Thorin's appearance. "Thorin! Are those blue jeans?"

Thorin and Fili stared at the short man, hiss interruption in the middle of such a serious conversation leaving them a bit startled.

When they didn't reply, Bilbo eyed them carefully, taking in Fili's flustered expression and Thorin's shocked one, realization dawning on him.

"You told him?" he asked the blonde, as if Thorin wasn't standing right there.

Fili nodded, and Bilbo took a seat next to him on the swing, his legs barely long enough for his feet to brush the ground. He looked up at his partner with concern. "Thorin?"

"It can't be true," the brunette replied, shaking his head furiously. "I don't know what you two are playing at, but this is not a matter to joke about."

Bilbo's eyebrows knit together, and he threw himself off of the porch swing, striding towards Thorin. He barely stood as tall as the other man's chest, but still managed to look terrifying. "**You,**" he poked Thorin in the chest, "know better than that. You're an ignorant fool if you think that I would do or say anything to hurt you!"

As Bilbo spoke, his voice climbed in pitch and volume."What is it going to take?" Bilbo continued shouting. "A DNA test? Do I need to write it out for you?" he paused for breath. "I've met the boy! He looks just like you and Dis, and he has his father's eyes. Don't get it into your thick skull that I'm playing you, Thorin, because I know the boy, and he's lovely and deserves a family. If you turn your back now, then so help me, I will leave you, Thorin Oakenshield. Mark my words."

"Bilbo," Thorin finally interrupted, placing his large hands on the other man's shoulders. At this point Bilbo looked more furious than Fili had seem him look in years, and he was breathing heavily, his finger still pressing into Thorin's strong chest.

"I'm in shock, that's all," Thorin continued, a small, rare smile gracing his lips. "Calm down. I would never turn my back on my own family. I just do not understand how this is possible without me ever having known."

"Strange things happen all the time," Bilbo replied in a soft voice, his shoulders slumping. He blushed and glanced around, anywhere he could look that wasn't at Thorin, obviously embarrassed by his outburst. "Sorry I yelled at you," he added, placing his own hand over one of Thorin's that still rested on his shoulder. "And thank you for watering the plants. I've been busy lately and haven't found the time."

"You weren't supposed to know about that," Thorin flushed.

Fili suddenly felt that maybe he should go inside, since clearly the other two had forgotten about him. He stayed where he was, though, hoping that he would soon be noticed and brought back into the conversation. After all, he was a part of this too.

Bilbo sighed, shaking his head at Thorin's irrational embarrassment, and said, "I suppose I should start supper. I'm sure you're ravenous after all that gardening."

Thorin chuckled as Bilbo stood on tip-toes to peck him on the cheek, before departing and heading back inside to the kitchen. Fili thought Thorin might follow him, but instead the older man walked towards Fili and sat next to him.

A long silence hung in the air before anyone spoke.

"What's he like?"

The blonde eyed Thorin, unsure of how to answer. "Kili?" he finally asked.

Thorin turned his head to give Fili sad eyes. It was obvious that the name conjured up painful memories of his sister. "Is that his name?"

Fili nodded and kicked off his shoes so that he could dig his aching toes into the soft grass. The sun was sinking steadily in the distance, barely beginning to cast a soft orange across the sky.

"Of course it is," Thorin stated awkwardly.

"He's great, father," Fili spoke, trying to ease the other's discomfort. "I don't know him very well, but from what I've seen so far, he turned out really well."

Thorin's head dropped into his hands, and he groaned in frustration. "I can't believe he had to grow up without a family," he sighed, his voice slightly muffled.

"You didn't know. You can't beat yourself up over it." The brunette only shook his head, so Fili continued, "Forget about what I said before. I was upset, and I know you would never abandon anybody. I, of all people, probably know that best."

The older man looked back up at his adopted son, a rare warmth seizing his heart. "Don't you dare ever think that you were a burden. We loved raising you, and you'll always be our son."

"I'm still thankful that you took me in," Fili said, smiling happily. "And I think you should do the same for him."

"Isn't he about eighteen?" Thorin asked, trying to remember exactly how long it had been since his sister's death.

"He is," Fili nodded. "But his lifestyle can't be that stable. He just works in the coffee shop, after all, and there's no way he's making enough money to survive off of."

"He's the new barista?" Thorin looked shocked, but then gave a short laugh. "Well, Bilbo did a great job of keeping the staff within the 'friends and family' zone."

Fili nodded and chuckled in agreement. "I'm not sure where he's living now, though. Bilbo undoubtedly knows."

"He's living in Dori's Bed and Breakfast," came a shout from inside. "Kili's friends with the youngest."

"Good to know he was eavesdropping," Thorin mumbled.

Fili shot the elder a crooked grin, and then Bilbo popped back outside, wiping his hands on a small towel.

"I put a roast in the oven and started cooking some green beans. Can I trust that you boys will keep an eye on them for me?" He looked legitimately worried about leaving his precious dinner in the hands of his husband and son. Fili figured he was probably right to worry, though. The two of them weren't notorious for their cooking skills.

"Where are you going?" Thorin questioned, glancing at the setting sun. "It's nearly dark."

"I'm going to go back to the coffee shop and see if Kili wants to join us for dinner."

"I thought he had to help close tonight," Fili said.

"I think Bofur can handle closing on his own," Bilbo replies thoughtfully. "And I swear, if I come home to a burnt roast, it'll be your heads in the oven next."

Fili and Thorin swallowed nervously, glancing at each other, before nodding vigorously.

Bilbo tossed his hand towel at Fili's head, shaking his head at the youth. "And when I get back I expect the table to be set and you two cleaned up and ready to be the best hosts possible. The poor boy is probably terrified enough as it is, and he won't need you two acting like dolts and scaring him away."

"I'm always a perfect host," Fili scoffed, "and Thorin _is _a dolt. He can't help it."

Growling, Thorin gave Fili a playful smack to the back of the head, and they both burst into cheerful laughter. Bilbo rolled his eyes, trying to hide his smile.

"Just _attempt _not to make a mess of things. I'll be back soon." And with that, Bilbo's head of red-brown curls disappeared once more.

"I suppose we should head back inside to clean up and watch over the food," Thorin sighed. "I don't think he was kidding about having our heads if we screw things up."

Fili shook his head, raking a hand through his long hair. "I don't either."


	5. Welcome

Chapter Five

Welcome

_Kili_

Kili was bored out of his mind. It was nearing seven o'clock, and Erebor Coffee hadn't had a customer for almost half an hour. Normally it wasn't so dead, but he assumed the reason was because it was such a nice day – the sun was out, it was a warm, and he doubted anyone wanted to be sitting indoors, drinking a hot beverage. Kili couldn't blame them. He was itching to go outside and get some sun, but it was going down, and by the time he'd be off it would be dark.

Just then Bilbo walked in, the small bell on the door ringing and drawing the brunette's attention to him, assuming it was a customer.

"Bilbo! What are you doing back? I thought you were a customer for a moment."

The small man shook his head, glancing around the coffee shop. "No, that I am not. I can see we are quite busy, though," he noted sarcastically.

Kili nodded, letting out a bored groan. Bilbo looked back at him and walked to the counter, leaning on it casually.

"I actually came by to see if you wanted to join us for dinner – Fili, Thorin and myself, that is. Thorin would love to meet you, and I definitely think Fili wouldn't mind having a boy his age in the house for once."

Kili wrung his hands nervously and worried his lip with unforgiving teeth. The offer excited him, but at the same time made him nervous. Plus, he couldn't exactly leave work…

"But there's still over an hour before closing time," he replied. "And I'm sure you don't want to wait for me to finish before eating. It'll be late."

"Don' worry about it, laddie," Bofur says, clearly having overheard their conversation from the back room. He came out and moved to stand next to Kili, by the cash register. "I'm certain I can handle this place on my own. You go on."

"You see?" Bilbo gestured at Bofur with a pleased smile. "This place will be dead for the rest of the night. The shop can spare you for one evening."

"O-okay," Kili stuttered, scratching his head. "If you're sure."

"Of course I'm sure! Now, let's get going. I left those boys at home with the food, and if we don't get back soon who knows what'll happen."

The brunette gave Bilbo a weak grin and took his apron before going into the back room to put it in his locker. He didn't keep many things in there – just his work shirt and apron – but it was less that he had to carry to and from home each day, excluding the times when he had to take them home to wash them. After putting everything away he wandered back out to find Bilbo waiting for him by the front door.

"Wow, Mister Boggins, you really are in a hurry," Kili gave the older man a kind smile, following him outside.

"Once again, Kili, it's _Baggins. _And please, just call me Bilbo. It's like I said, those boys are trouble when left in the kitchen. We haven't a moment to spare. For all we know, there won't _be _a house to have dinner in."

Bilbo had led them over to bronzy-colored Fiat. "Sorry, Mister Baggins," he blushed. "I like your car! I didn't imagine you driving something so sporty."

His companion smirked and unlocked the car for them to climb in. The inside had a creamy upholstery and looked nearly brand-new, which was mostly due to Bilbo being such a tidy person. "Oh? And what did think I drove?"

Kili shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe a Subaru? I pictured something practical."

Bilbo started the car and winked at the boy before pulling out of the lot and heading towards home. "I'm a practical man, Kili, but I can also be a lot of fun. One might even say I can be a bit of a daredevil."

The brunette burst into laughter, trying to imagine Bilbo doing something daring. "I'm sure you are, Mister Boggins."

Bilbo smiled, ignoring Kili's sarcasm and the improper pronunciation of his name. It seemed unlikely that the boy would ever remember how to properly say it, let alone call him by his first name. It was a lost cause.

The two managed to make it to the house in one piece, much to Kili's relief. Bilbo had pushed past the speed limit more than enough times to scare him. He hadn't fully understood how scared the man had been for his precious dinner, and Kili was actually shocked to find the house still intact. The way Bilbo acted, he had expected to pull up to a sort of battlefield.

Instead, the two of them pulled up to a huge, old, Victorian-style house. The home was accompanied by a fairly large front yard and a long gravel drive that led back out to the main road. The exterior was a mix of grey stones and bricks, with white trim and tons of cute, rectangular windows. Some of the windows had sheer, lace curtains cover them on the inside, while others clearly had heavy drapes, which Kili assumed were bedrooms.

"Wow," he sighed, stepping out of the car. "This is really nice."

"It's been in Thorin's family, which I suppose is also your family, for decades. It was passed down to him when his father died a few years ago, but nobody lived in it for ages, so we had to spend a lot of time fixing it up," Bilbo replied, leading Kili up the sidewalk, towards the front door.

Kili admired the perfectly green grass and the ivy vines growing up the side of the house. "Why wouldn't anyone want to live here? I see nothing wrong with it."

"Thror, Thorin's grandfather, didn't really do any sort of maintenance on it whilst he was living here, so it was in pretty poor shape. Nothing I couldn't handle, though!"

Kili chuckled and suddenly realized they had reached the front steps. They ascended them up to the door, and Bilbo turned to give the brunette a reassuring smile.

Kili almost threw up.

"Don't worry, Kili," he said. "These two are nothing to be afraid of. And Thorin can be intimidating at first, but he's really just a big ol' softie.

Kili nodded slowly, unable to make his voice work. He wanted to stay rooted to the spot, content with the darkening sky and the front yard, but he was also ecstatic about passing through that door, into the next chapter of his life. So, in the end, he allowed Bilbo to grab his hand and pull him over the threshold.

The sight that met his eyes was just as beautiful as the exterior of the house. The foyer was large and open, and it had huge windows that led the brunette to believe that the room probably looked even better early in the day with streaks of golden sunshine pouring in.

The walls were a creamy color that almost appeared to be gold in the setting sunlight, and the weathered hard-wood flooring was a rich chocolate-mahogany. Next to the front door was a row of coat hooks on the wall and a well-used umbrella stand. Besides that, the only other piece of furniture in the room was a grandfather clock on the wall opposite them, next to an archway that looked like it lead into a living room.

Suddenly a familiar face appeared in the archway, blonde hair whisked back into a low ponytail and the brightest of smiles plastered on his face. "Bilbo! Bilbo!" he exclaimed happily. There was a flush across his fair cheeks that looked almost too good on him… not that Kili took any notice of it. "We didn't burn a thing! We did everything perfectly."

The older man lifted a single eyebrow and crossed his arms, a skeptical look upon his face. "Are you positive? I started slow cooking the roast earlier today, so at the temperature I had it at in the oven, it should be perfectly cooked by now. Did you take it out?"

Fili nodded enthusiastically and then looked at Kili. "Welcome to our home! Be prepared for the best meal ever!"

And with that, the blonde flounced back the way he had come, Bilbo and Kili hot on his heels.

Of course the living room and kitchen proved to be as nice as everything else. They were a nice balance between old and modern, and every single piece of furniture was perfectly placed and looked like it belonged. Kili, who had always enjoyed cooking, liked the kitchen the best. The countertops were a smooth, dark marble, and the floor was the same kind of wood that had been in the foyer, as were the cabinets. Glancing around, he saw almost every cooking utensil he could possibly dream of and more. It was like paradise.

The roast that was sitting atop one of the counters, on the other hand, was not.

"Well, it's not burnt," Bilbo sighed, scrunching his nose at the hunk of meat.

Without even touching or cutting into it, Kili could tell it wasn't fully cooked. It looked unappetizingly pink, and even had a rubbery appearance to it. It wasn't a lost cause, but it also wasn't fit to eat.

"Fili, darling, this isn't done," the short man finally said. "Did you leave it at the temperature I had it at?"

Fili's excitement deflated, and he cast a pitiful look at the floor. Kili would have almost done anything to put the happy smile back on the blonde's face, even if it meant eating the undercooked roast. "I might have changed it," he mumbled.

"Why?" Bilbo sighed, exasperated, but not exactly angry.

The blonde looked up, a pleading look in his blue eyes. "The green beans were done, so I went to turn off the burner, but instead I accidentally turned off the oven. And then I couldn't remember what temperature it had been at, so I just put it on a low temperature so it wouldn't burn! I'm sorry, Bilbo."

The older man chuckled quietly at Fili and shook his head. "It's quite alright. It can still be saved. At least you didn't char it. However, it will be a while before we can eat," he said, all the while inspecting the kitchen, as if he was looking for something. "Where is Thorin?" he finally asked.

"Setting the table."

Bilbo moved towards a swinging-door and out of the kitchen, the younger boys both following him. When they passed through the doorway they stepped into what Kili assumed was the dining room. It was fairly small and matched the kitchen. It also had a sleek, wooden table and a simple chandelier that hung from the ceiling to provide a warm light.

Setting the table was a tall man. His hair was even longer than Kili's, and it was slightly darker than his own but had silver streaks running through it, and he wasn't nearly as slender as Kili, instead having broad shoulders and a strong build. The youth recognized him. He was definitely the man that Kili had seen in pictures. There was no denying that.

"Thorin, we won't be eating for a while," Bilbo piped up. "Our roast isn't finished. So I suggest you go clean yourself up in the meantime, since it doesn't appear either you or Fili did so."

Thorin turned, jumping slightly at the unexpected voice, and smiled sheepishly. "I was just about to go change, I swear. I had to finish setting the table first."

Abruptly, Thorin's eyes grew wide. His eyes were blue, but they weren't like Fili's. Where Fili had a calm, cerulean blue color, Thorin had a deep cobalt. They bore into Kili's own brown ones, an unreadable expression gracing his face, making the younger one wish he could disappear.

"Thorin, this is Kili - your nephew, if I'm not mistaken," Bilbo introduced, gesturing towards Kili.

"You look so much like your mother," he finally grumbled. Kili could see the pain reflected in the older man's eyes and thought that maybe he wasn't so bad after all. It was obvious that he was still torn over his sister's death, and in that moment Kili was absolutely sure that his uncle had known nothing of him prior to this day. He hadn't been intentionally abandoned.

Kili moved forward shyly, praying to whatever god would listen that his uncle would accept him. When he approached Thorin, the man didn't move for a very long time, and it felt like everyone in the room was holding their breath.

Thorin eventually reached out to touch Kili, cupping one of the youth's cheeks in his large, warm hand. Kili didn't move and stared into the taller man's face, trying to read his expression - not wanting to make any wrong moves.

"You look so much like her," Thorin repeated, smiling warmly. Kili felt himself relax, and his rigid posture slumped. "Your mother," he continued, "Dis. You're a spitting image of her – except for your eyes. Those are your father's."

Face breaking into a wide grin, the young brunette threw himself at his uncle, wrapping his arms around him in a happy hug. Kili could be shy, but he was a normally-cheerful boy, and it never took him long to warm up to people. The elder stilled, momentarily thrown off, and then returned the gesture, laughing at the young boy's excitement.

"Group hug!" Fili cried, running to join in on the hug, but Bilbo stayed put, shaking his head at the joyful family.

Noticing that Bilbo hadn't joined in, Thorin reached over to grab the small man, saying a quick 'oh no, you don't' and pulled him in, the two younger boys moving to make room for him. Bilbo muttered a complaint about group hugs, and the other three laughed at his disgruntled form.

When they broke apart, clutching their sides in mirth, Bilbo finally broke into a grin, taking in the sight of the three happy men. "My boys…" he murmured.

Bilbo's words warmed a deep place in Kili's heart. He felt like a hole inside him had been filled. He'd never had a family before, and now he thought that he might actually have a place within one. He didn't know them very well yet, but they had been accepting thus far.

"I have to get back to the food," Bilbo sighed. "I refuse to let it burn on _my _watch."

"What are we supposed to do?" Fili asked, scratching at one of his arms, which were covered in a soft down of golden hair.

"Why don't you give Kili a tour of the house," he suggested, moving back towards the kitchen. "Lord knows, we don't need him getting lost."

"I can do that," the blonde replied, throwing and arm around Kili's shoulders. "Come on. I'll take you upstairs."

Kili nodded in agreement, and the two boys went back into the living room and took the stairs two at a time to the second level. It was a loft, so they could look down onto the living and dining rooms as they wandered down the long hallway. Kili still couldn't help gawking at every new thing that met his eyes. He had never seen such a gorgeous house, and he couldn't wait to go home and tell Ori all about it.

The first room Fili showed him was the bathroom, which was altogether normal, minus the _gold _faucet. And the _gold _soap dish. Oh, and also the _gold _shower head. One couldn't possibly forget about that.

"Wow," Kili stated, looking at Fili's reflection in the mirror as he spoke, "this is a pretty nice bathroom."

The blonde sighed, looking half amused and half exasperated. "Yeah… Thorin kind of has a thing for gold. Bilbo has this gold suite jacket-" he cut off, leaving Kili feeling curious.

"And?"

"Let's just say Thorin can be a little bit handsy," Fili answered, shuddering slightly. Then he grinned cheekily at the brunette. "Just consider that a warning; you see Bilbo in his gold suite jacket, you get out of there."

Kili nodded quickly, eyes round as saucers. What had he gotten himself into?

Fili clearly saw the shock in the younger man's expression, and he gave him a light, reassuring pat on the shoulder. "Don't worry about it. Those two can be embarrassing, but usually they keep the public displays of affection to a minimum."

The two giggled uncomfortably, and Fili brought a hand up to Kili's head. The brunette almost side stepped the hand, not used to people touching him so freely, but refrained himself. Then he felt the blonde tugging at his hair tie until his dark locks fell freely from their previous confines. He was slightly taken aback. He had forgotten to take his hair out after work, probably because he had been too nervous about meeting his uncle, but he didn't understand why Fili had wanted it down.

As if realizing what he had just done, the blonde backed away, blushing furiously. "Sorry, Kili. I'm sorry. It was a subconscious thing."

"Why?" Kili asked boldly.

Fili gave him a questioning look, the blood leaving his pale cheeks in his confusion.

"Why did you do it?" he clarified, a little bit softer this time.

"Um.. I-I just thought you might want it down. I thought you only wore it up at work… and… and it looks good down," he stuttered out, his blush returning. "Sorry." He repeated.

"Don't worry about it," Kili replied. "I was just curious." He'd previously been under the impression that Fili was a well-honed socialite, but he'd obviously been very wrong, seeing as the blonde was nearly as awkward as Kili.

Fili cleared his throat. "Why don't we head to a different room?"

Kili nodded in agreement, and the duo went back into the hallway and down to the next room. That one turned out to be a sort of library; a large room filled with books, comfortable looking furniture, a desk, and a ton of artwork on the walls. It was the first room that didn't seem like it had a perfectly planned-out design, and Kili sort of liked it because of that.

The third room they entered was Fili's bedroom. At first, the blonde had been hell-bent on passing by it, claiming that it was a mess, but Kili wasn't having it. If he was going to get a house tour, he was going to see the entire house. So, after enough poking and prodding, the two finally entered, and what Kili found was not at all expected.

'Messy' wasn't the first word Kili would've used to describe it. Sure, it wasn't sparkling clean, but it wasn't disastrous either. The bed was made, there weren't any dirty clothes on the floor, and it even looked like the desk and bookshelf were freshly dusted. The only mess Kili could spot was the scatter of art about the room. Drawings and sketches were spread all over the desk, one corner of the room had an easel with a half-finished painting of a dragon on it, and there were more stretched-canvas paintings leaned against the walls than he could count. It was amazing.

"I love it. It's so peaceful," he stated, turning in a full circle to take it all in. The walls were a soft olive-green, and the trim and ceiling was eggshell. The colors complimented his bed, which was wooden with cream-colored sheets and a brown comforter, giving it an earthy feel. Kili felt at ease in this room – like he could breathe deeply.

"You really think so?" Fili asked, taking a seat on his bed.

Kili nodded, smirking at one of the paintings leaning against the wall. It was a really colorful interpretation of the red headed girl, Tauriel, who had tattooed Kili. He could tell just by looking at the painting that Fili and her were close.

"Are you dating?" he asked, turning away from the picture to eye the other boy mischievously.

Fili glanced at the painting and then burst into laughter. "Tauriel? Hell no. She's, er… not exactly my type. We're just friends."

Kili turned back to the painting, disbelieving that the two of them could be only friends. The artwork seemed to hold so much admiration and joy. "Are you guys close?" he finally asked, still curious.

Fili nodded and crossed his arms over his chest thoughtfully before answering, "She's always been there for me. She can be annoying at times, but she helped me through some of the darker stages of my life. I don't mean for it to sound so ominous, but it's true."

"And Legolas? The receptionist? Are you friends with him too?"

The blonde nodded again and then leaned back on the bed to lie down and stare at the ceiling. "The three of us have been best friends for years."

"And has he been pining over Tauriel the whole time?" the brunette questioned.

Fili barked out a laugh and turned his head to eye Kili. "You noticed?"

"How could you not?" Kili responded, sitting down next to Fili. Normally he wouldn't be so open with someone so quickly, but something about Fili made him feel comfortable, like they'd known each other their entire lives.

"You have a point. She thinks he's gay."

Kili turned to look away from Fili, hoping the older boy didn't notice the pink flush gracing his cheeks. He normally wasn't embarrassed by his sexuality, but he felt the need to keep it secret from his new, blonde companion. "Poor dude."

"I know," Fili yawned in agreement.

The two sat quietly for a while, and once Kili was sure his skin was back to its normal color, he too laid back against the mattress, staring at the ceiling. He hadn't noticed before that there was a calming night sky painted there, a swirl of blacks and blues, with millions of tiny stars spread across the expanse. He imagined he could get lost in the painting and end up lying there for hours, just thinking, but Fili eventually interrupted.

"I'm hungry," he grumbled, sitting up and stretching. "Let's go see if dinner is almost finished. I'll give you the rest of the tour later."

Kili mumbled his agreement and followed the blonde out of his room and back downstairs to the kitchen. The scent of the roast was now wafting throughout the first level of the house, and Kili could already tell that Bilbo had worked some magic on the meat. Kili silently wondered if he could possibly ask the man to teach him a few things. He hadn't gotten a ton of cooking experience growing up, but the few times he had cooked, he had really enjoyed it.

Fili pushed the swinging kitchen door open, and much to Fili and Kili's horrific shock, what they found was Bilbo and Thorin lip-locked in a passionate embrace. Bilbo stood on tip toes, being so much shorter than Thorin, and had his fingers wound in long, dark locks.

"Whoa!" Fili huffed, letting the door swing shut once more. "Sorry you had to see that," he added, grabbing Kili by the shoulders and leading him to the living room.

"Oh, good lord, Fili," came Bilbo's voice from behind them. He obviously knew that the two had just witnessed the older men kissing and had left the kitchen to retrieve them. "You don't have to act so surprised. We raised you. You should be used to this!"

Fili let go of Kili and shook his head at Bilbo, eyebrows raised high in skepticism. "No way. Nobody wants to witness their parents… doing… _that._"

The small man rolled his eyes, placing his hands on his hips. "You're absolutely ridiculous. You act as though you just walked in on –"

"There's no need to finish that sentence!" Fili exclaimed.

Bilbo laughed, and Kili couldn't help but join in, much to the blonde's displeasure.

"Can we eat now?" Fili huffed.

Bilbo nodded, his face red from laughter, and led the two boys towards the dining room.


	6. Red Wine

Chapter Six

Red Wine

Fili

The next day at work, Fili was finishing up on his last client when Tauriel decided to come and bug him. The girl Fili was tattooing didn't seem to mind the red-head's presence, so he didn't bother telling her to go away, although he sort of wished she would. It was difficult to focus when she started to chat him up like a mad woman.

"What's that?" she asked, peering at the tattoo. She was moving her head every which way to try and see around his hand.

"It's a name."

"Who's name?" Tauriel insisted.

"My daughter's," the client answered. "Her name is Evangeline. She was just born a little over a month ago."

Tauriel gave the other woman a bright, genuine smile, excitement lighting her face. "That's a pretty name! I hope you know, though, that Fili spelled it with two L's."

The girl's face changed to shock and horror while Fili shot his friend an angry glare. "No I didn't," he responded. "She's just teasing you."

His client relaxed, and the blonde put the last finishing touches on his work. Then he wrapped and bandaged the tattoo, giving the woman instructions on how to care for it, and sent her on her way.

"Is it really necessary to scare my clients?" he questioned Tauriel as he began cleaning his work area and preparing to close up the shop.

"No," she shrugged. "But it's fun. So what's this I hear about Kili joining the family? You never tell me anything, anymore!"

Fili glanced up at the redhead, shocked by the change of topic. "How do you know about that?"

"He told me," she replied, rocking back and forth on her heels, her tattooed arms crossed behind her back. "I was talking to him on the phone last night."

"I didn't realize you guys even talked," the blonde stated with a lift of his brow. "And it's not as if I had the chance to tell you about it. It was just yesterday that we found out he's Thorin's nephew, and it all happened so fast."

She threw her hands up in frustration. "You had all day today!" She exclaimed. "We even took our lunch break together, and you didn't even tell me then. Were you ever going to?"

Fili bowed his head in slight embarrassment at being called out. Tauriel was right, after all. And she was one of his best friends. She deserved to know. "Eventually…"

Tauriel took a seat on the bed his client had been previously lying on and grabbed Fili's large hands with her own, slender ones. "Remember that you can come to Legolas or I for anything. I know that you aren't upset about Kili joining your family, but it's still a huge change for you, and I can't imagine that you don't want to talk about it… or at least celebrate."

He nodded, a few of his honey locks falling from his ponytail. Tauriel released his hands and pushed the strands behind his ear and then helped him finish cleaning, and suddenly Fili remembered why he loved her so much. Sure, she could annoy him every now and then, and she could be completely blind sometimes when it came to certain people, but she understood Fili. She could see right through him and be exactly what he needed or help him work through any problems he was having. Or she could simply be there to support and enjoy life with him.

As the two finished up and went back to the front of the building, Fili linked his arm through hers and gave her side a light nudge. "Hey, Tauriel, thanks for being my friend."

"I'll always be your friend," she replied.

"Are you two ready?" Legolas asked, hopping off of the front desk and slinging a small backpack onto his shoulders. "The sooner we get this over with, the better."

"Why do you continually invite us over if it causes you so much stress?" Fili asked, pulling the tie out of his hair. His ponytail had begun to give him a headache.

"Because I keep hoping my father will learn to act normally. You both have been coming over for years, and he still acts like it's your guys' first time every time! He's impossible."

"We're used to him," Tauriel said, pushing through the front door with the boys following closely behind her. Legolas was the last one out, and he turned to the door and locked it with one of the many keys on his key chain, tugging on it once just to make sure it was properly locked. "So there's no need to worry so much. We're immune to his flamboyant ways."

Legolas scoffed. "I'm not used to his flamboyant ways, so there's no way that you are."

"You're not so manly, yourself. You, of all people, should understand your father best," she retorted, flipping her long red hair over a shoulder, a smug smirk gracing her delicate face.

"Hey!" Legolas exclaimed, shooting the girl a hurt expression.

Fili decided to interrupt before a fight could break out. "Why don't you both just be quiet until we get to the house? There's no need for you two to bicker the whole way there."

They both huffed at him but didn't respond and pointedly avoided looking at each other. Fili sighed. It was going to be a really long evening.

If there was one word to describe Legolas' house, it was 'fabulous.' This wasn't exactly due to Legolas, however, but more to his father. Thranduil was as tall and striking as he was flamboyant and dramatic. Fili, to be honest, wasn't sure how Legolas had managed to come into this world. He had never met the blonde's mother, and his father seemed far too gay to have ever been with a woman, but Fili wasn't pointing any fingers or making any assumptions. He was simply trying to understand but didn't want to ask Legolas, fearing that he might offend his friend.

Tonight they sat at the luxurious dining table, feasting upon lamb and various greens that the personal chef had prepared, and they each had a dainty glass of red wine, which Fili hadn't touched. Thranduil was droning on and on about some drama that had taken place at his salon today. Most of what he was saying was lost on Fili; going in one ear and out the other.

Thranduil, like Thorin, was a business owner, but he only owned one shop, which was a high-end salon, named 'Mirkwood Salon.' Thorin, too, owned one, which wasn't far from Thranduil's, and it was named 'Bag End Salon.' Legolas' father had considered Thorin his mortal enemy ever since, which, of course, was very dramatic of him, and he often argued with Legolas about his job, suggesting that he should quit and come work in the salon, considering it 'wasn't fitting for his perfect, little prince to be employed by such a nasty man.' Legolas refused to work for his father, though, claiming he'd rather pitch himself off a cliff.

"Fili, you haven't touched your wine at all. Are you not pleased with it?"

Fili tuned back into the conversation, slightly thrown by Thranduil's random comment on his behavior. He cleared his throat before responding. "No, it's fine. I'm not really in the mood for wine is all."

The older man scoffed at Fili, as if he couldn't possibly imagine being in such a mood. Looking back, he couldn't remember having a dinner at the house of Thranduil that didn't involve multiple glasses of red wine – it might as well have been a permanent table decoration.

"If you're positive," Thranduil sighed, "I'm sure a glass of water can be arranged for you."

Fili held his hand up in protest. "No, I'm fine. Really. I'm not thirsty."

Legolas' father tilted his blonde head in acknowledgement and went back to his dramatic tale, but it didn't last long before there was a knock at the door, jolting everyone at the table.

"Were we expecting another?" Thranduil asked in his regal voice, one thick eyebrow quirking upwards.

"I-I don't think so," Legolas replied, just as confused as his father.

"Lara, would you please get the door," Thranduil called. A moment later Fili saw the housekeeper walk past the dining room doorway and make her way towards the front door, feet shuffling swiftly across the soft shag carpet.

Everyone waited and listened as the door was opened. A quick greeting was exchanged, and then they heard Lara returning, a second pair of feet shuffling much louder than hers. Before the pair reached the dining room, Fili heard a man's bright laugh ring out at something the housekeeper had said, and Fili whipped his head around to stare accusingly at Tauriel.

"I didn't invite him," he said firmly. It wasn't a question, but she answered him anyway.

"I know. I did. I thought it could be fun," she replied, crossing her arms in defiance.

"What on earth are you guys talking about?" Legolas asked, exasperation heavy in his tone.

Before either of them had the chance to reply, Lara entered the room with a cheerful-looking Kili, a small grin plastered upon her own face. Fili had yet to meet someone who _didn__'__t_ smile in that boy's presence. Both of them stopped in their tracks, however, as soon as they saw the expressions of everyone sitting at the table.

"Hello?" Thranduil greeted. "And who might you be?"

Kili's smile dropped at the man's tone, and Lara chose that moment to skitter away, muttering something about the bedrooms needing to be dusted. She probably recognized Thranduil's condescending tone better than anyone else, besides maybe Legolas.

"Uh...Uhmm…" Kili stuttered out, wringing the bottom of his red tank top in his hands nervously. "I'm Kili."

Thranduil attempted a smile that looked more painful than necessary and then turned to Legolas. "Son, do you know this boy?"

The look Legolas was giving Kili wasn't at all too pleased, but Fili knew Legolas wasn't the type to completely disrespect someone out of jealousy, so he kindly responded, "We've met, but he's better friends with Tauriel."

"He's also my cousin by adoption," Fili threw in, causing Legolas to give him eyes as wide as saucers. Tauriel, apparently, hadn't spilled that information yet, like Fili had assumed. _Great_, he thought. Now he was going to get an absolute earful from his blonde friend.

"Oh? Did Bilbo's sister adopt him? He looks a little old," Thranduil responded, as if Kili couldn't hear him.

Fili shook his head and pushed his plate back, suddenly too uncomfortable to be hungry. "No, he's Thorin's nephew by blood."

The look of pure shock that crossed the older man's face almost made Fili feel smug, but the feeling soon disappeared when Thranduil turned towards Kili again, all but sneering at the scared brunette. Fili's protective nature suddenly spiked out of control, and Tauriel laid a gentle hand on his knee, under the table, probably recognizing his look of swelling rage.

"Please," Thranduil gestured towards the empty chair at the end of the table, between Tauriel and Legolas, still staring at Kili, "join us."

Kili visibly swallowed and nodded, moving towards the empty spot hurriedly. He kept his eyes downcast until he was settled in, and Tauriel leaned over to talk quietly to him. The redhead's obsession with Kili was slightly ridiculous, but at that moment Fili was grateful for it. Even Legolas gave Kili a kind smile and offered to get him something to drink.

Fili continued to focus on Thranduil, who was giving Kili a strained look, as if he was physically stopping himself from saying something rude. Thorin and Thranduil had never gotten along, due to their competitive businesses, but Thranduil had always been the more hateful of the two. Thorin's hate didn't go any further than Thranduil himself. He didn't have any problems with Legolas, and had even suggested in the first place that they should hire Legolas as their receptionist when the last one had quit.

"So why haven't we seen you around before, Kili?" Thranduil questioned, feigning friendliness. He took a sip of his wine and went back to his food, waiting for the youth to respond.

Kili's eyes still wouldn't meet Thranduil's, and he looked at a loss for words, so Fili answered for him again. "We just found out about him a couple days ago. Thorin didn't know he even existed."

Thranduil smirked at Fili's harsh tone. "And already you've grown so protective."

Fili almost growled, but Tauriel's hand, which still rested on his knee, gave him a hard squeeze, and he clenched his jaw to keep from replying.

After that, nobody really said anything, using their remaining food as an excuse to keep their mouths occupied. Tauriel and Fili both worked on dishing up Kili a plate of food, the boy thanking them repeatedly during the whole process.

Once they had all finished, Legolas loudly suggested that they head upstairs to his room, and the four of them jumped up from the table and raced out of the kitchen, uncaring about the heated glare Thranduil gave them as they did.

"I can't believe my father has such horrible manners," Legolas complained, shutting the door once everyone was safely inside his room. "Sorry about that, Kili."

The brunette shook his head, glancing around the room uncomfortably from where he was standing. "It's okay. I shouldn't have intruded on your dinner. I knew I'd be late, I should've just gone home after work, instead."

"No, you were obviously invited," Legolas replied, perching himself on his desk, much like he always did at the tattoo shop. He never seemed to use a chair. "You're always welcome in my home. A friend of Tauriel and Fili is a friend of mine, even if Tauriel doesn't tell me when she invites people to my house," he finished, frowning playfully at the girl.

Tauriel blushed. "I was going to tell you, I swear. It just slipped my mind."

Whenever Tauriel and Legolas bantered kindly with each other, it reminded Fili of the two when they had been freshman. Back then, the roles had been reversed: Tauriel had crushed on Legolas until their sophomore year, which was when she had decided to move on and had also come to the conclusion that Legolas was gay, even though Fili had sworn up and down to her that he wasn't. To this day, Fili regretted not telling Legolas about Tauriel's intentions when they were freshman, because the following year he ended up dealing with a head-over-heels Legolas. The two were impossible, but sometimes Fili could see Tauriel's old feelings resurface, and it gave him a glimmer of hope for the couple.

"Don't worry about it," Legolas easily forgave her.

Fili rolled his eyes at the pair, which nobody seemed to notice.

"Well, you don't all have to stand around," Legolas continued. "Sit down."

The group spent the remainder of the evening chatting with Kili, trying to get the youth to open up. The more the brunette spoke, the more everybody grew attached to him – even Legolas. He spoke about growing up in an orphanage and his best friend, Ori. He told a lot of funny stories, along with sad ones, and opened up very quickly once he realized that he was wanted there. Fili couldn't wipe the grin off of his face.

"So what are you going to do now?" Tauriel asked the brunette, sitting cross-legged on the floor, smiling softly.

Kili shrugged and chewed his lip. "I'm not sure. I'll keep working and save as much money as I can, and I'll probably stay at the Bed and Breakfast until I can afford my own place."

Fili frowned. Sure, he didn't know Kili very well, and they hadn't discussed the matter, but he had assumed that Kili would eventually move into the house. He couldn't imagine that Thorin and Bilbo would turn him away, and they had plenty of room, but perhaps the brunette didn't want that. He'd grown up without a family, and maybe he didn't feel the need for one now. Fili didn't think it was the proper time to bring it up, though, so he kept his mouth shut.

It was around 11:20 when they decided to call it a night, and since they had carpooled with Legolas from work, he was the one that had to take them home. He dropped off Tauriel first, because she lived the closest to him, and then he dropped off Fili. He offered to take Kili home as well, but the brunette insisted he walk home from Fili's place, claiming that it was only a couple miles away and that he would be perfectly alright.

Legolas said goodbye and then left Fili and Kili standing alone on the long gravel drive that led up to the house. The brunette turned to the blonde, and Fili couldn't help but notice that under the dark sky, Kili's messy locks looked a lot like the molasses Bilbo always used in his gingerbread cookies.

"I guess I'll see you again soon," the younger finally spoke. He had opened up quite a bit the last couple days, but he still acted very shy, and Fili just wished he would one day feel completely comfortable around him.

"You aren't walking home," Fili replied, grabbing Kili's shoulder in an affectionate squeeze. "I'll take you."

Fili began walking across the gravel, towards the Jeep, and he expected the younger man to follow him, but he didn't. Fili stopped next to the vehicle and turned to squint at Kili through the darkness. "Come on."

"I can't ask you to do that," he replied quietly.

Fili tried not to roll his eyes. Kili had his arms crossed and a downward tilt to his head, and even though he was taller than Fili, the way he held himself made him look small. Add that to his scrawny frame and obvious lack of self confidence, and he looked like the perfect prey for some creep wandering the streets this time of night. Fili felt his over-protectiveness kick in again, and he shook his head. "Look, Kili, I know you aren't used to people doing things for you, but you better get used to it now. In this family we help and support each other always, and this is no exception. I _want _to do this for you. So let me."

Kili took a long moment, staring at his feet, before replying, "It's fine. Please, I want to walk."

Fili strode forward, fed up with Kili's stubbornness, and grasped both of the brunette's arms. "Listen," he began, looking the boy directly in his chestnut eyes, "it's after 11:30 at night. Weird people wander the streets at night, and I don't mean to offend you, but you'd make a pretty good target for them."

Kili blushed so furiously that Fili could see it clearly through the dark, and he eventually nodded his head, rubbing tiredly at his eyes. "Okay," he mumbled, smiling bashfully. "you can take me home, but just this one time."

"Yeah, whatever," Fili sighed, releasing the taller boy before heading back to the car. "Just get in."


	7. Weeds

Chapter Seven

Weeds

_Kili_

"Kili! Kili, wake up."

The brunette mumbled a quiet 'piss off' at the source of the bright and cheerful voice, and then proceeded to roll over in his warm bed, intent on slipping back into his slumber. The sleepy bliss only lasted for a few short moments before a somewhat heavy weight crushed the tiredness out of him.

"Ori! What on earth? What time is it?"

"It's nearly 8:30, lazy bones. Get out of bed!"

"It's Saturday," the brunette protested, still not daring to open his eyes, knowing they'd be painfully met with bright sunlight. "And I don't even have work today!"

"I know," the tiny man responded, and Kili could hear the grin in his voice. "Bilbo called a little while ago and asked for you, but of course Dori told him you were still asleep."

"What did he want?" Kili questioned, finally cracking open one eye to the bright room.

Ori shrugged. "Nothing in particular. He just wanted to know if you wanted to come over, I think. He said everybody in the house had the day off. Apparently that's quite rare."

"If Dori was the one who talked to him, how do you even know all of this?" Kili sat up, yawning, and squinted at his mousy-haired friend.

"You know Dori. He's a bit of a chatter box – told me all about the conversation only seconds after he'd hung up the phone."

Kili nodded in understanding, knowing exactly how Dori acted when he was in a particularly talkative mood. "I suppose I should call him back. It would be rude not to. He's been so nice to me these last few days."

"Are you going to go over there?" Ori asked, sliding off of Kili's bed to sit in a small armchair. He had a leather journal tucked under his arm, which he had on him at almost all times, in case he felt the urge to write. He was jotting something down more often than not.

"I'm not sure," Kili mused. "I've been around them quite a bit this last week. They probably need a break."

Ori huffed at the brunette, giving him a knowing look. "Stop being so self conscious. You're family to them, and Bilbo wouldn't have called if they didn't want you around. And to me it sounds like this Fili guy enjoys your company."

"Sure, but he already has friends. He doesn't need me around."

"Sure, but he doesn't have a brother."

Kili flushed and pulled a pillow into his lap, hugging it tight to his chest. "But we aren't brothers. We aren't even related – we're only cousins by adoption."

"But you _could _be more than that. Stop distancing yourself from people. You're my best friend, Kili, but you need some new people in your life. It would be good for you. You're too introverted."

"You're one to talk!" Kili laughed. Ori was the most shy, introverted person he'd ever met.

"I was born this way," Ori mumbled in his tiny voice. "You weren't. I think you'd be really outgoing if you would let loose and stop worrying. I see it in you, and I'm urging you, trying to give you the push out the door. You need to go out there and get a life."

Kili snorted. "So do you."

"I can't!" the little man exclaimed. "I'm going to be stuck here with my brothers for the rest of my life."

Kili perked up, suddenly remembering a conversation that Bilbo had had with Thorin the other night at dinner. "Hey, Thorin owns a bookshop too, you know. Bilbo also does management there, and he said they were hiring. Do you want me to ask about it for you?"

"Please!" Ori squeaked, jumping out of his seat in excitement. "I can't stay here any longer. I'll lose my mind."

Laughing, Kili nodded his head and slid out of bed. He moved towards the dresser and began rummaging for something to wear.

"So does this mean you're going over there?" Ori asked.

"You've given me no choice now, haven't you?"

Instead of calling anyone, Kili ended up walking to Bilbo's, deciding he needed the fresh air to help wake him up, and he asked Dori to call and let them know he was on his way.

About halfway through his walk, Kili was strongly regretting this decision. For the time of day, it was rather hot, and the sun beat down on the back of his neck, dark hair sticking to him in sweaty strands. Naturally, it was the one day he didn't have a hair tie on his wrist. The distance he had to cover was only about three miles, but that day he could've sworn it felt like ten.

"Kili? What on earth?" Bilbo greeted, opening the door to a sweaty, red-faced boy. "We could've picked you up."

Kili followed the man inside and shut the heavy door behind him. "It's fine. I'm used to walking," he panted, wiping at his brow and attempting to sound nonchalant.

"You could have at least worn shorts," Bilbo said, scoffing at Kili's dark jeans. He was glad he'd worn a tank top again and not the long-sleeved shirt he'd originally planned on wearing; Bilbo probably would have fainted.

The two walked into the kitchen, where Fili sat at the counter, sketching out what appeared to be a lone mountain peak. When he noticed them he looked up, a few strands of hair falling from his ponytail.

"Hey," he smiled at the brunette. "You look hot."

"Thanks," Kili replied, shocking even himself.

"Cheeky bastard," the blonde snorted, gesturing for Kili to take a seat next to him, which he did. "You know that's not what I meant. Is it really that warm outside?"

Kili nodded. "Haven't you been up for hours? I'm surprised you didn't know."

"Oh, no. Don't be under the impression that Fili is an early riser just because I am. If it weren't for me, that boy would be in a permanent slumber," Bilbo replied. His back was turned to them, since he was cooking something on the stove, but Kili could hear the fond smile in his voice.

"That's not true!" Fili protested.

Kili took a long look at Fili, just now noticing his grey tee shirt and flannel pajama pants. His tied-back hair looked an absolute mess, and he still had a tired glow about him. It was a sight to behold.

"Did you _just _get up?" Kili wondered, trying hard not to crack a smile at the older boy.

Fili mumbled something indiscernible and turned back to his drawing.

"Sorry?"

"I might have," the blonde spoke, clearer this time.

"I'm not judging," he assured him. "I would probably still be asleep if I hadn't had a wild Ori pouncing on me this morning. He never lets me sleep in."

"See?" Fili exclaimed at the back of Bilbo. "I'm not the only one."

The short man turned to them, a pair of tongs held in his hand. He was cooking bacon, Kili could now see. He thought it was a bit late in the day to be making breakfast but wasn't complaining. He loved bacon no matter what time of the day it was. "Why don't you just go upstairs and leave me to cook in peace?"

"Fine." Fili rolled his eyes, gathered up his drawing supplies, and hopped off of his stool. "Come on, Kili," he added.

Kili hopped down and scurried after the blonde, only a little reluctantly. He hadn't eaten yet, and the smell of Bilbo's sizzling bacon was only making him hungrier.

"Have you eaten yet?" he asked Fili as they trekked up the staircase.

"Nope, but if I'm not mistaken, Bilbo is making BLTs for lunch, so it shouldn't take long. Have you?"

So that explained the bacon. Kili shook his head, forgetting that Fili couldn't see him. "No," he finally sighed, realizing his blunder.

They entered Fili's room and the older boy eyed Kili from where he'd taken a seat on the bed. "Are jeans the only thing you own?"

Nodding, Kili crossed his arms self-consciously. "Besides a pair of sweatpants."

"I think Bilbo expects us to help do yard work today, now that summer is around the corner. He's already got Thorin outside mowing the lawn. You can borrow a pair of my shorts."

The brunette highly doubted that Fili's pants would fit his slender waist but didn't bother mentioning it. Instead, he sat on the soft, carpeted floor, taking in the sight of Fili's room for a second time. It looked almost the same as before, but something about it felt different.

"You cleaned," he finally observed out loud.

Fili pulled his hair out of its ponytail, running his fingers through the tangled curls in an attempt to tame them. "A little bit. I like to keep things organized."

"You'd die if you lived with me," Kili replied, watching the hypnotic motion of Fili's hands.

"I doubt it. I work with Tauriel. She can be an absolute mess sometimes," he smiled.

Before Kili could reply, Fili continued on. "Speaking of living with you, are you ever going to live here?"

Kili could've been mistaken, but Fili's tone had almost sounded hopeful, which sent a small rush of blood to the brunette's cheek, and the newly warmed place in his heart swelled. "I-I'm not sure," he stuttered, staring down at his lap.

"Talk to me," Fili said, his tone firm.

Kili gave the blonde a would-be innocent look, but Fili wasn't buying it. "I'm eighteen years old," the younger eventually sighed. "I'm too old to be dependent on my uncle."

Fili snorted, crossing muscled arms over his broad chest. He eyed Kili with amusement. "Kili, you've never depended on anyone. It's about time you do so. And look at me! I'm twenty two – almost twenty three – and I still live here. I don't think Bilbo would let me leave, even if I tried to."

Instead of responding, Kili chewed his lip, which was a nervous habit. Fili clearly notice it and continued on.

"We have plenty of room. There are two bedrooms that are completely unoccupied."

The brunette looked up, locking his brown gaze with fierce, blue eyes. "It would be nice to get out of the bed and breakfast. It reminds me too much of the orphanage, even though they're hardly alike. It's just that I've never had a real home."

"And it's about time you had one." The blonde said it with a sort of finality, ending the discussion, and stood from the bed. He then walked over to his closet, opened it, and stepped inside, probably in search of some clean clothes.

Kili watched Fili flit about his closet with a strange sort of fascination. The blonde still had a sleepy look about him whilst he tossed articles of clothing onto his bed, creating a small pile. First a pair of clean boxers came, followed closely by a white tee shirt and a tan pair of shorts.

"Here," the blonde called, tossing Kili a smaller pair of denim shorts and belt. "Those are pretty tight on me, so you can keep them if they fit."

Kili nodded and continued watching as Fili exited the closet and moved towards his fresh pile of clothes on the bed. It was when he peeled his shirt off that Kili finally looked away.

"Oh – oh, um… I'll go now," he stuttered, clutching the shorts to his chest and pushing up off of the floor to stand up.

Fili let out a quiet laugh and snatched up his own clothes. He moved towards the door, holding a hand up towards Kili to stop him from progressing, and opened the door. "It's fine. Sorry, you stay here and change. I'll go to the bathroom."

Kili nodded, knowing his face was bright red, and watched the blonde exit the room.

Cursing to himself, the brunette began working his pants off. Kili was mortified by the way he acted around the blonde, not understanding why he couldn't keep it together. Kili was comfortable with himself usually – he wasn't ashamed of his sexuality, although he usually didn't like to talk about it with other people, but that didn't explain his behavior around Fili.

Sure, the guy was attractive, but he was also supposed to be family to Kili, and he barely even knew him. Yet nobody else had ever made Kili feel so smitten. Would it prove to be a problem? Most likely. But the brunette didn't want to think about that yet.

After slipping on the shorts, which were only slightly too big, he left the room, feeling too uncomfortable to stay any longer, and he really didn't want to be stuck alone with Fili anytime too soon again. As he hurried down the stairs, the savory smells of lunch became stronger and stronger. When he entered the kitchen he was overjoyed to find a stack of sandwiches on a platter, accompanied by a small plate of avocado slices and a pitcher of iced tea.

"Eager to eat?" Bilbo smiled, wiping down the stove with a wet rag to rid it of any mess. "Feel free to dig in."

"Are we eating in the dining room?"

The older man shook his head. "It's such a nice day out – I figured that we would eat out back. There's a small table out there. Plus, we don't need Thorin coming in and tramping dirt and grass through the whole house."

Kili chuckled, and then Fili entered the kitchen, silencing him almost immediately. If anyone noticed his sudden embarrassment, they didn't mention it.

"I didn't find you when I went back to the room," Fili spoke, running a hand over his fresh, neat ponytail, "So I figured you followed your nose."

"Why don't you boys bring this food outside and get started? I need to go change," Bilbo said before Kili had the chance to stutter out some stupid, nervous response.

Fili nodded and grabbed the sandwiches and avocados, followed closely by Kili and the tea. The pair went outside and laid everything down on a round, glass table. It had an umbrella attached to it, effectively blocking out most of the harsh sunlight. The two of them sat and watched as Thorin finished the lawn, and shortly afterward Bilbo joined them again, and everyone was ready to eat.

Like the dinner Bilbo had served them earlier that week, the BLT's didn't disappoint. After eighteen years of eating practically nothing but orphanage meals, almost anything tasted like heaven, but Bilbo's had a certain quality to it that made the food better than anything he'd ever tasted; perhaps, Kili thought, it was the amount he cared about his family and the meals that he fed them.

After eating, Bilbo had them get straight to work. Fili and Kili were assigned the job of pulling all of the weeds along the fence line and the edge of the house, and Bilbo made himself busy tending the garden and flower beds while Thorin sanded and stained the porch swing and the end tables on either side of it.

"Do you happen to have a hair tie?" Kili asked as they began working. Fili had already pulled his golden hair back, but Kili's was beginning to stick to the back of his neck under the blazing heat of the day.

Fili pulled a tie off from around his wrist and handed it to him, a kind smile gracing his lips. "You're lucky I'm so prepared. I have to carry hair ties everywhere, because they always break when I'm tying back my hair."

Kili took the offered tie and pulled his own hair back into a messy bun. He preferred it to a ponytail. "Maybe because you have so much," he laughed in response, tugging on Fili's ponytail once he was done messing with his own dark locks. "It's really thick."

The blonde cleared his throat and smiled bashfully, but didn't respond, so the two of them went back to the forest of weeds along the border of the house.

The two of them ended up getting lucky, finding that the majority of the dirt was quite soft, causing the weeds to pull easily from the ground. In a short time they managed to pull six trash bags between the two of them, and on a quick inspection they decided they were a little under halfway done and decided to take a break.

After moving their filled bags to the front of the house, next to the trash cans, Kili followed Fili as he made his way towards the porch table again, stretching his arms over his head, reminding the younger boy of a cat. As he did so, the tattered white tee shirt he was wearing lifted, revealing a small section of the blonde's lower back. Kili couldn't help but stare at the warm, golden skin and the two dimples that were indented just above his waistband.

The blonde turned to Kili and dropped his arms. Noticing the brunette's sudden flush, Fili asked, "You okay?"

Kili looked away, nodding briskly. "Fine. I'm fine, perfectly fine."

"Alright," Fili chuckled, pouring himself a cup of lemonade. "Do you want water, lemonade or tea?"

Kili observed his options for a moment and ended up saying, "Water."

Instead of heeding his response, Fili poured a second cup of lemonade and offered to him, much to Kili's confusion. "I said water."

"Right," Fili grinned before taking a sip of his own cold drink, "but we both know that you want lemonade."

"You might be right," Kili mumbled around his cup as he drank.

Fili drained his beverage and set it back down on the glass table. "You never seem to ask for anything that you think could be an inconvenience," he observed, crossing his arms.

"It's how I was raised," Kili shrugged. He suddenly felt a bit uncomfortable, although not unappreciative. "You can't ask for a lot when you're raised in an orphanage."

To Kili's relief, Fili didn't spare him a pitiful look. Kili hated it when people felt sorry for him or treated him differently, simply because he was raised without parents. He'd still been educated, fed, had friends, and did a lot of things that other kids got to do. Instead of pity, Fili just gave him a look that was nothing but excited.

"That ends now," the blonde spoke, throwing an arm over Kili's shoulder to march them back over to where they'd left off on the weeds. Kili barely had time to put his cup down. "You can ask for anything you want now. I can't promise you'll get it, but there's a good chance. We can't spoil you too rotten, after all."

"I'll hold you to your word," Kili teased. When he let himself relax, it wasn't very hard to be comfortable and friendly with the older boy. Maybe he'd have the brother he had always wanted, after all.

Fili laughed, a full rich sound that was thick with joy and friendliness and laced with pure mirth. "I'll do my best to fulfill all your wildest wants, I promise."

Kili's teasing smirk fell from his face, and he dropped his chin to his chest, head bowed in the attempt to hide his sudden embarrassment. If he was going to spend more time with this family - with Fili - he was going to have to try and work on his wild emotions.

It took the four of them the majority of the day to finish all of their yard work, and as Fili and Kili pulled their final weeds, the sun had just begun to set. The two of them were beyond dirty, sweaty and disgusting, but Kili couldn't deny that he had had a bit of fun. A couple of hours prior to finishing, the two boys had made quite the mess of dirt and weeds when Fili had decided to chuck a dirt clod at Kili's head. Hell-bent on revenge, the brunette had upturned his back of weeds over the top of Fili, and before long the two were wrestling around, peals of laughter drifting across the yard. Bilbo hadn't allowed the situation to last long, and the two of them had ended up with an extra hour of work, but Kili personally thought that it had been worth it.

Since it was growing so late, Thorin suggested that they go out for dinner, and nobody was in disagreement with that. Everyone showered and changed first, and Kili was happy that the house was so big and they didn't have to take turns. He ended up showering in the bathroom closest to Fili's room and had almost ended up having a fit of laughter over the irony of his life. Only a few months ago he'd been living in an orphanage, showering under lukewarm water with an old bar of soap, and now he was standing under a steaming pound of hot water, fresh from a shower head made of gold.

The brunette was reluctant to get out, but his grumbling stomach forced him to turn the water off and wrap up in a plush towel. He'd brought his underwear and the jeans he'd been wearing that morning into the bathroom with him, but only just realized that he couldn't put the shirt he'd been wearing back on. His poor tank top was smeared with dirt and grime, and smelled no sweeter than a dirty wrestling uniform. So Kili ended up pulling on his underwear and jeans, wrapped the towel around his head, and shuffled down to Fili's room.

"Yeah?" came the blonde's response when he knocked on the door.

"It's me," Kili replied. "I have a predicament."

Fili flung the door open and smirked and the shirtless boy that stood before him. "Oh, dear. You haven't come to ask for something have you?"

Kili rolled his eyes, remembering their earlier conversation. "I have, actually. I need a shirt."

With a short nod, Fili turned around and marched back into his room and to his dresser. He dug around for a moment, muttering something under his breath.

Kili watched appreciatively. Even though he subconsciously knew he shouldn't be thinking it, he couldn't help but admire Fili every time he saw him. The blonde was now wearing a dark red tee shirt and jeans, which fit his sturdy frame perfectly, and his wet hair was hanging past his shoulders, growing curlier and curlier in the spots where it had begun to dry. Kili even spotted a few perfect ringlets in the short, fine hairs that framed Fili's face.

"Here."

Kili was pulled from his thoughts and grabbed a blue sweater out of Fili's hands. "Isn't it too hot for a sweater?"

Fili snorted and grabbed a dark, leathery jacket and shrugged it on. "It's not _that _hot. The evenings are still pretty nippy, and knowing Thorin we will probably go to a pretty nice restaurant. That sweater will look good on you. Plus, it's one of the smaller articles of clothing I own."

"Thanks," Kili mumbled, slipping the sweater on and causing his towel to fall from his head. It was beyond soft and fit him just perfectly. It also carried the same dark, musky scent as his blonde companion, which Kili wasn't going to complain about.

"I told you," Fili nodded, taking in Kili's form. "But you're going to have to fix that hair of yours."

Leaning to the side, Kili was able to spot himself in the mirror over Fili's dresser, and the look of horror that graced his face was not missed. Fili chuckled and retrieved a brush for him to run through his dark hair, which was able to somewhat tame the wild tresses.

"I'm assuming you used the shampoo in that shower?"

Kili grunted.

"I figured as much," the older boy replied, eyes sparkling with mirth at Kili's reflection. "It always does weird things to my hair also. It makes it far too soft… almost cotton-like. I don't know why Bilbo buys it. Maybe it works better for him."

"I'd hope so," Kili mumbled. He set the brush down, deciding he'd done all he could to calm his hair. It was still curlier than usual, and had a few wild strands, but was mostly normal.

"Ready? Let's go."

Kili followed the blonde downstairs, where Thorin and Bilbo were waiting for them, and then the group went outside and clambered into the Fiat. Bilbo drove, which shocked Kili; he'd expected Thorin to be the one to drive between he two of them.

They pulled out of the long driveway and took off like a herd of turtles. They drove down lit city streets that Kili had never even been down before, and his face was all but plastered to the window, trying to take in the expensive scenery. When they finally came to a stop, Kili found that Fili had been right; Thorin had decided on an expensive seafood restaurant, and he was suddenly very grateful for Fili's sweater.

Since Kili had never been to the restaurant before, he let Fili order for him and ended up with a steaming plate of crab legs, melted butter, grilled shrimp and some green beens, nearly causing the boy to drool right in front of them all. Never in his life had he seen such a glorious plate of food.

As they ate, Thorin talked about his businesses, since Kili was interested, and they even discussed Kili's upbringing a little bit. Kili had spoke of the orphanage, his friends and school, and the conversation only ended when the topic was switched to his parents. Thorin told the boy that his mother, Dis, would be really proud of him, but Kili hadn't been able to find it in himself to reply to his uncle.

As Thorin spoke of the bookstore he owned, Kili was suddenly reminded of the promise he'd made to Ori earlier that day.

"Hey, aren't you hiring there?"

Thorin nodded, his long, grey-streaked hair swaying. Kili hoped he'd have hair like that at his Uncle's age. "Why do you ask?"

"My friend, Ori, would really like a job there," he replied, and Thorin opened his mouth to respond, but Bilbo beat him to it.

"That's a great idea," the tiny man said, smiling happily. "Ori is such a sweet boy. He'd be perfect for the bookstore, but doesn't he spend a lot of time helping his brother at the bed and breakfast?"

"Yeah," Kili nodded thoughtfully, "but he really hates it. So he's ready for any excuse to get out of there for a while."

"That's understandable," Bilbo replied. "I'll give him a call tomorrow morning. That is, if Dori doesn't chat my ear off before putting the boy on the phone."

Kili laughed in agreement, understanding Dori's talkative ways almost as much as Ori himself. He'd grown up with their family and knew there was a good chance that Bilbo would never get to speak with Ori if his eldest brother was the one to pick up the telephone.

The remainder of dinner was mostly spent in a happy silence as everyone ate their warm food. By the time they arrived back at the house Kili was nearly seeing double he was so tired, and Fili insisted that he stay the night, which Kili eventually agreed to, under the conditions that he could sleep on the floor. Fili, who thought that was ridiculous, eventually convinced the brunette to sleep in the guest bedroom, eventually bringing the two to an agreement.

Even though they were both tired, they still ended up staying awake for a couple hours longer, wasting away the time by talking in Fili's room. Kili wanted to know all about Fili and the blonde felt the same about Kili, so they exchanged stories about high school and their friends, laughing at the funniest of the tales and feeling sorrow for each other at the sad ones. Kili hadn't ever grown to someone so quickly in his life, and honestly, it sort of terrified him.

Fili was in the middle of a story about the first time Thorin had taken him out to teach him how to drive, when Kili felt his lids sliding shut. It wasn't that he had no interest in Fili's story, but he was just so sleepy that it was nearly impossible to stay awake. Somewhere, in the very back of his mind, he felt horribly guilty, but the rest of him was perfectly content to slip into a deep slumber, right there in the chair he was occupying.

Fili continued speaking for a while, lying on his bed, staring at the ceiling, before he noticed that Kili was asleep. The sight was mesmerizing. Kili looked so young in his slumber, almost child-like, and prettier than anyone Fili'd ever seen, although he wasn't sure if Kili would appreciate being called pretty.

Laughing lightly, Fili stood and retrieved Kili's sleeping form, sliding one arm behind the brunette's neck and the other behind his knees. For a moment he considered taking him all the way to the guest bedroom, like he'd wanted, but it seemed like a far way to carry the sleeping boy, so he opted for dumping him on his own bed instead. Then he pulled back the bedding and flicked off the light before crawling in next to Kili. Being a queen, the bed was large enough to easily fit both of them, and Fili figured that if Kili didn't move too much in his sleep, the brunette would never even know he was there.

With that final thought, Fili quickly followed Kili into a coma-like slumber, a small smile on his lips.


	8. Cross Hatch

Chapter Eight

Cross-Hatch

_Fili_

The following morning Fili woke earlier than he normally would, unaware of the other body inches from his own. He groaned when he saw that the clock on his nightstand read 6:57, and he stretched, wondering what it was that had awoken him at such an hour.

His outstretched arm met a solid mass, and Fili rolled over to find the back of a messy, brunette head. Smiling, the blonde reached out for a particularly wild strand of brown hair and twirled it around his finger. The hair was slightly wavy and looked like dark, chocolate silk in the dim lighting of his room, and for a moment Fili wondered if he was perhaps still asleep and dreaming, but then he remembered the previous night - staying up until late hours talking to his new acquaintance, carrying Kili to his bed after he'd fallen asleep…

Fili gasped and let go of Kili's hair, jerking back slightly in surprise. The sudden, accidental movement caused the blonde to roll off of the bed, effectively managing to hurt himself and wake Kili from his heavy sleep. As the younger boy rolled over, brows scrunched in confusion and sleepiness, Fili felt all the blood in his body rush to his cheeks.

"Whas goin on?" Kili asked, rubbing at his eyes. He didn't seem fully awake, and the blonde was secretly hoping he would fall back asleep and believe the entire situation had been a dream.

"Uh, um… Nothing. I just.. I-I was startled and fell out of bed," he replied stupidly, unable to tell him the truth - that he was more attracted to Kili than was healthy, and he was simply trying to maintain a platonic friendship with the brunette, not wanting to scare him away.

Kili's hand dropped from his face, and he sat up a little straighter, blinking at his surroundings. "Bed?"

Fili nodded, swallowing thickly.

"Why am I in your bed?" he asked a little more clearly. "I thought I was supposed to sleep in the guest bedroom."

Fili, if at all possible, turned even more red in the face and scratched at the back of his head to calm his nerves. "You fell asleep while I was talking, and I didn't want to attempt dragging you all the way to the other room, so I just put you in my bed." Fili grimaced at his own words. It hadn't sounded nearly as creepy in his head.

Kili glanced away, staring far too intently at the door. He was sitting up, slightly hunched over, still wearing his clothes from yesterday, and the blankets were bunched around his waist. Deep brown strands of hair stuck out every which way, and the rest of it fell in thick waves down to his shoulders, almost appearing inky in the dark room. Fili couldn't breathe.

The blonde stood up awkwardly, all while trying to find something to distract his gaze from Kili, but nothing was jumping out at him, and his eyes kept returning to those unkempt locks. "I have to, uh, go," he eventually mumbled before rushing out of the door and down the hall to the restroom.

_Stupid, stupid, stupid! _Fili thought to himself, leaning against the counter, glaring at his reflection in frustration. _Why must I be such an awkward twat?_

He stared for a while longer, upset with himself for his own social ineptness, before taking a much needed piss. He was unable to shake Kili's suddenly distant expression. The boy was many things, but detached wasn't one of them; he always seemed enthusiastic about things, whether it be negative or positive. He was never so quiet.

After adjusting his pants and grumbling a few obscenities under his breath, Fili also decided to pull his hair back in a low ponytail and brushed his teeth and brushed his teeth before heading back to the bedroom, plastering what he hoped was a nonchalant expression on his face.

He didn't expect to find Kili up, his hair pulled back neatly and pulling on his shoes.

"Going somewhere?"

The brunette's head whipped up, startled by the sudden voice. "I just remembered I have to be at work by 7:30. I would've set an alarm, but I wasn't exactly thinking about it last night," he replied shakily, looking back down and his shoes as he tied the laces.

Fili hated to see him go so soon, but at the same time was relieved. The atmosphere between the two was tense, and he wasn't sure how much it would take to make him snap and do something incredibly stupid. This boy was supposed to be like a cousin - or maybe even a brother - to him, and he didn't want to screw up what they had going.

"Do you need a ride?"

Kili shook his head and stood up, heading briskly towards the door. "I'll be fine."

Fili let the brunette push past him and out of the room, watching his retreating form. He didn't know how long he stood there, but eventually he did follow, making his way downstairs. It obviously hadn't been that long, because Kili was still there, and much to Fili's delight, Bilbo was insisting on giving the youth a ride to work. Kili eventually gave in, due to the fact that Bilbo was also going in to take care of some things, and probably assumed this would mean the elder wouldn't be going out of his way to do something for him. Fili wished Kili would just let others help him.

* * *

For the rest of the morning Fili went through the motions. He ate the breakfast that Bilbo had left for him, drank three mugs of black coffee, sketched out a few things, and read a little bit of a book he'd just started recently. It was, technically speaking, a completely normal morning, but an hurricane was raging inside of him, and he wasn't truly able to focus his mind on anything.

Thorin clearly took notice of this.

"Fili," his deep voice rumbled as he took a seat at the counter next to the boy, "What is troubling you?"

Fili pulled his eyes from a page in his book to look at his adoptive father, trying to mask his face into something somewhat neutral. "Nothing. I'm fine."

The look Thorin gave him made it clear that he wasn't going to believe him for a moment. He knew his son better than that. "You and I both know that isn't true. And you should also know that you can trust me with whatever it is."

Fili gave a minuscule shake of his head and stared at his lap, knowing that he shouldn't lie to Thorin, but he also couldn't bring himself to tell him his issue, figuring the older man would scoff at him in disgust. "I promise you that I am fine. I know you don't believe me, but I can take care of my problems all by myself. I'm an adult. It's nothing I can't handle."

"It's not the first time you've said that," came the response, "and last time you were wrong."

The glare Fili sent Thorin was nothing short of icy. He remembered just as well as anyone and hated when people brought it up. Yes, there'd been a few dark things in his past, but he was over them - he'd moved on. Why couldn't anyone see that?

"I'm well aware of what I said, but this time I mean it. I'm doing far better than I used to be, and my current problems are nothing I can't take care of," he repeated.

Sighing, Thorin gave Fili a calming pat on his back. "I trust you, son. I simply don't wish for you to get hurt or do anything reckless. You're in a good place right now, and it would be best to remain that way."

Fili allowed his posture to slump and nodded. "I know."

"It's almost 1:00," Thorin eventually stated after a few moments of silence. "Why don't you head up and start getting ready for work?"

Nodding again, Fili slid off of his stool and walked away, Thorin watching him with worried thoughts as he went.

* * *

_Kili_

"Kili!"

The brunette looked up from the Caramel Latte he was making to spot a familiar red-head, of course accompanied by her blonde sidekick as they made their way towards the cash register.

"Tauriel," Kili smiled, going back to drizzling a cross-hatch of warm, sweet caramel over the beverage, "I'll be right there." He finished up the drink and handed it over to the appropriate customer, thanking them with his friendly grin and bidding them a good day.

"What are you two up to, then?" he smiled at Tauriel and Legolas, mentally noting that the two really did look good together. Despite Legolas' long hair and pretty features, he still looked somehow masculine, and he stood over Tauriel by a few inches, seemingly casting a protective shadow over her all the time. Kili was still boggled by the fact she hadn't noticed his infatuation for her.

"We're about to head into the shop and figured we'd swing by for our caffeine fix," Tauriel grinned, her sparkling, brown eyes alight with pure friendliness. "I was hoping you'd be working."

"It's your lucky day, I guess," he responded. "What can I make for you?"

Tauriel ordered, and just as Kili was about to ring her up, Legolas said, "I'll pay for hers as well," and ordered his usually vanilla latte with whipped cream and four extra shots.

"You two are so cute," Kili teased as the blonde handed over some cash to pay for the drinks. "How long have you been dating?"

Tauriel just laughed, but Legolas turned so red that Kili was sure he could feel the heat radiating from across the counter. He wasn't positive if the flush was from embarrassment, or anger at Tauriel's laughter, or both, but he knew it couldn't be healthy.

"We aren't dating," Tauriel giggled. "Legolas doesn't even swing that way."

"I'm not gay," he muttered, barely loud enough for Kili to catch.

"Really?" Kili feigned surprise. "I could've swore you two were a couple. You'd be so perfect together, truly!" He was trying his hardest to win Legolas a little bit of game, but the blonde was only turning more red, and Tauriel was shaking her head in hysterics. Kili felt really bad for the guy.

Eventually Legolas left to wait at a table while Kili made their drinks, but Tauriel stuck around to chat for a while. She talked aimlessly about everything from an annoying client she'd had a few days prior to the forest-green color of her nail polish. He was really only half listening to her, nodding every now and then so she'd think she had his attention. He was drawn fully back into the conversation when she spoke his name tentatively.

"What?" he asked.

"I was wondering…" she mumbled, looking nervous for the first time he could remember since meeting her, "do you want to hang out sometime? Maybe have dinner or go to a movie or something? We've been talking quite a bit the last week or so, and I'd really love to get to know you better.. if that's alright?"

Kili, ever friendly, nodded without hesitation, smiling at the girl. He didn't understand what had her so tongue tied, considering she was usually such a confident, easy-going person, but he didn't think much of it and agreed that they should definitely get together soon. Then Kili went about making the drinks they had ordered.

Once he finished, he handed the two warm cups over to Tauriel and waved as she and Legolas left the shop. He didn't miss the miserable look Legolas shot him, and sent him a hopeful smile back, wishing the two would just get together. It would make everybody's life a lot easier.

Thinking about life being easier brought Kili's thoughts back to where they had been previously - to Fili. He couldn't stop thinking about earlier that morning, when he'd woken up in the blonde's bed. The experience had been confusing and shocking but not altogether unpleasant. Sure, it had been pretty awkward, but Kili had been left with a warm feeling that he couldn't shake. He would never admit it, but he was glad that Fili had just let him sleep in his bed. Which was a major problem.

Perverted, fucked-up, ridiculous, disturbing - call it what you want - but Kili was starting to develop feelings for his adoptive-cousin. He couldn't imagine what his uncle would say, and didn't want to think about how Fili would react. The blonde would probably never talk to him again, too disgusted to maintain their new and fragile friendship. He doubted he would find it worth saving.

For the remainder of Kili's shift he tried to be as friendly as possible to his coworkers and customers, but on the inside he was a wreck; tossing negative thoughts and insults at himself over and over, causing him to eventually feel slightly ill, and he didn't argue with the ride home that Bilbo, once again, offered him. All he wanted was to curl up in his bed, under a giant pile of blankets, and never see the light of day again.

* * *

**Hey! I haven't talked to you guys much, if at all! Sorry about that. Thank you so much to those of you that have been reading so far, and I hope you are liking. Most of what I'm posting is written for Camp NaNoWriMo, so it is either unedited or only slightly edited, so I apologize for typos or anything really confusing. If you guys have any comments, questions, constructive criticism or suggestions please let me know in a review!**

**Thanks! XoXoXo**


	9. Melding

Chapter Nine

Melding

_Fili_

Over the next couple of weeks Fili tried his best to remain calm and completely normal (which was no easy feat.) He continued to hang out with Kili, due to the fact that the boy came over all the time, whether it was for dinner or just to visit with the family. Fili couldn't blame him; after all, Thorin was his only blood-relative left, and he probably wanted to seize the chance and spend as much time with him as possible, and as time went by, Kili became a little bit more comfortable and began asking about his parents, eager to hear stories about them. It always put a smile of Fili's face.

Although things were going well, and Fili was trying to hold it together, it wasn't exactly working. Everyone that knew him couldn't help but notice how reserved he had become, when he was normally so friendly and outgoing, at least towards the people he was close to. Now he was always quiet, throwing all his focus into his job and his art. He was extremely productive, which wasn't something to be frowned upon, but his quietness and attitude worried his family and friends.

Despite his discomfort and sudden anti-social moods, Fili was really happy to be spending time with Kili. The two were starting to get to know each other really well, and the more they talked, the more they discovered how well they clicked and got along, and each other's company soon became a normal thing, causing Fili to feel somewhat lonely when they were parted.

The only thing that Fili truly couldn't handle were the dreams. They all started one night after he had sat down to work on a drawing, and try as he might to think of anything else to draw, he couldn't focus on a single thing but Kili. He was itching to draw the slender brunette, but he avoided it, feeling like it was creepy thing to do, even though he'd drawn loads of strangers in the past, not to mention he preferred drawing his subjects whilst he could look at them, and he wasn't about to ask Kili if he could draw him. He'd probably go running for the hills and never look back.

Anyway, after he'd gone to bed that night, having accomplished nothing at all, Fili had dreamt of a certain brunette. It hadn't been anything too fascinating - just a normal dream about them sitting in Fili's backyard, talking about various subjects. It had almost been like real life, and Fili had been able to handle it. The same could not be said for the next night, when he had dreamt of them at the beach - touching, kissing, holding hands - or the night after that when he'd had Kili in his bed, naked as the day he was born, doing unspeakable things. It got worse every night, and Fili was losing a lot of sleep over it.

It was a morning after one of these eventful dreams when Thorin and Bilbo decided to sit down with their adopted son and have a little chat.

"Fili, what is wrong with you?" Bilbo began, cutting straight to the chase. He was never one to beat around the bush.

"What do you mean?" Fili demanded defensively, even though he was well aware that he hadn't been acting normal recently.

Bilbo lifted a brow. "Don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about. You haven't been yourself recently. First you started distancing yourself from people - you've barely talked at all - and now you are sleeping later than usual and, to be quite frank, look a little bit sick. We're worried," he gushed, glancing quickly at Thorin as he spoke.

"I already told Thorin. I'm fine."

"But you're not, Fili. All three of us know that," Thorin spoke, his thick, dark eyebrows pulled down into a frown. "You're acting like you used to, before things got bad."

Fili wanted to leave. He didn't want to sit there and face both of the men who raised him and lie to their faces. He wasn't okay, but he also wasn't doing as poorly as he had in the past. He really was handling things on his own, and he was working on getting his emotions in check. Everything would be fine… he hoped.

"I'm only having a few personal problems. It's nothing to worry about. It's just stupid teenager stuff."

"But you're not a teenager anymore," Bilbo noted. He crossed his arms over his chest and stared at the blonde with a face that reminded him of a therapist, and Fili honestly felt a little intimidated by the man, even though he was so tiny that his feet couldn't reach the floor from where he sat in his armchair. "Maybe you need to go back to therapy."

Fili inwardly groaned and rolled his eyes. Speaking of therapists…

"I don't need to go back to therapy," he said firmly, shaking his head for emphasis. "I simply need some time alone. You guys don't have to cause an entire intervention every time I get a little upset. It's not necessary."

Neither one of them looked convinced but let the subject drop, much to Fili's relief. He wasn't prepared, however, for what they changed the topic of conversation to.

"Well, just so you are aware," Bilbo began carefully, "Kili has approached me and said he'd like to move in. It took a while for me to convince him that he's more than welcome, but he finally came around."

Fili almost choked. He had not been expecting that at all, not that he didn't want Kili to move in, but it was being sprung on him quite unexpectedly… and not at the greatest time. He wasn't sure if he'd be able to handle living under the same roof as Kili without smothering him, but he knew he was going to have to buck up and learn to deal with it. And besides, he really did like Kili's company, and it would be nice to live with someone his age for once.

"Okay," he coughed, trying his best not to blush furiously at his sudden onslaught of thoughts. Bilbo and Thorin seemed to take no notice.

"That's settled, then," Bilbo nodded, hopping out of his chair. "I'd like you to clean out the guest bedroom, across from yours, to the best of your ability. We don't need him to move into a clustered and dusty room."

Fili nodded, and the short man departed, mumbling something about starting breakfast. He sat quietly, trying to wrap his mind around the events that were soon to come. It was proving to be quite the day.

* * *

_Kili_

The day Kili moved into his uncle's house was the day Tauriel decided she wanted to get together with him. He stood in the middle of the guest bedroom - now his bedroom - staring at the text message he'd just received on his brand new phone. He'd never had the money for a fancy cell phone before, but Thorin had insisted on adding him to their wireless plan, and Kili hadn't put up much of an argument for once, thinking of what Fili had told him the day they'd pulled weeds.

Kili glanced across the room at said blonde, who was working on putting together a new dresser. He'd done a really nice job of fixing up the room for Kili, but it still hadn't had much storage, so he and Fili had taken a trip to the nearest furniture store, and since Kili wasn't very good with large, heavy objects, he had gladly let Fili take over.

_**Picnic tonight?**_

Kili looked at the text message for what felt like the thousandth time. He had promised Tauriel he'd hang out with her, but she had kind of picked a busy time. He didn't want to let her down, though, so after a long internal argument with himself over it, he decided to reply with a simple:

_**Sure.**_

Kili looked at Fili again, whose back was turned towards him. He thought he should probably tell him about his get-together with Tauriel, since he would, after all, wonder where he was going, but at the same time he couldn't bring it up. There was something about it that made him feel like he should hide it from Fili, and he was hoping the blonde wouldn't find out. Which meant that he would have to come up with some stupid excuse to leave the house, but he was keen on following this gut feeling, so he would do what he had to do.

When the time came to leave, Kili ended up telling his new family that he was meeting up with Ori, and none of them had any sort of concern over the matter. Fili perhaps looked a bit crestfallen, probably having expected to spend Kili's first night living with them in a more celebratory manner.

"I won't be late," he promised, looking directly at Fili.

The park that Kili met Tauriel at was huge, green and beautiful. A recent rainstorm had obviously done great things for the plants and grass, and in the middle of the park was a huge hill that overlooked part of the city, creating the perfect space to have a meal with a friend.

"Tauriel," he greeted, giving her a hug before helping to set up. The girl had brought dinner, and Kili nearly laughed at the sight: two ham sandwiches, a container of store-bought potato salad, and a six pack of root beer. Kili couldn't help but think it was another reason she and Legolas should get together. He didn't know the other boy very well, but he had an inkling that he probably knew how to cook - at least better than the redhead did.

"Thank you for meeting me on such short notice," she grinned, pulling him down to sit on the blanket with her. "I had a client cancel, so I got off of work early, and figured it was a good chance to do this. It gave me the time to get everything set up."

Kili smiled. "It's not a problem. I didn't have a lot going on this evening anyway."

"I thought you were moving into your uncle's today?"  
Before answering, Kili cracked open a can of root beer and took a sip, shrugging. "Yeah, I did. But we didn't have any plans for this evening, and I honestly don't have that many belongings. It didn't take much time."

The two of them ate in a comfortable silence. It was, for the most part, still like spring time outside, so the sun began setting soon after they began, and Kili was content with just watching the glow of the city become brighter and brighter. Eventually Tauriel spoke up, chatty as she was, and the two discussed different things, such as films they'd seen recently, a few happenstances from their childhoods, etc. Everything was actually going really well, and Kili was having a great time, until his redheaded companion decided to scoot closer to him, effectively invading his personal space.

He wasn't sure why it bothered him so much, but he scooted over, nonetheless, trying to put some distance between the two of them, to no avail. Tauriel just moved even closer, clearly not getting the hint.

At one point, after an insufferable amount of scooting about, Kili opened his mouth to ask Tauriel what she was doing, but he didn't get the chance. Instead, she took that as her cue to go in for the kill.

Her lips brushed his momentarily, and it took everything in him to keep from flinching away. Instead, he held very still, hoping she'd notice his discomfort. And it didn't take her long at all.

"Sorry," she gasped, pulling back, a pretty, pink tint scattered over her high cheek bones.

"It's fine," he mumbled back, once again moving away slightly. He felt completely disoriented, and it was quiet for a while before he continued, "Why'd you do it?"

"I like you a lot," she admitted, looking shyly up at him through thick lashes, "a-and I thought you liked me back, so I figured it would be okay."

Utterly shocked, Kili just stared at the girl. She had to be joking.

Suddenly defensive, Tauriel leaned back and gave him a hurt look. "What is that expression for?" she demanded. "You're looking at me like I'm stupid or something."

"No. No no no no, that's not it at all!" he gushed, reaching out to grab her hand in his own. "I promise, it's not. I do like you, Tauriel, but only as a friend. I just though you knew… I thought you were able to see.." he trailed off, unsure of how to go about the subject.

"Knew what?" she squinted at him, as if she were trying to look into his head and see the answer.

"I'm… well, I'm gay," he finally grumbled with a shrug. "I thought you knew that."

For a very long time Tauriel didn't respond, and she looked down at her hands, her head hanging low. Kili felt as if he had just punctured a child's balloon, dampening her entire day, and he didn't know how to go about fixing it.

"Tauriel-"

She cut him off with a raise of her hand, but didn't lift her head. "You and everyone else. Apparently that's the sort of men that are drawn towards me."

"That's not true."

"Isn't it?" she snapped, finally looking back up at him. Her hair danced as she quickly moved her head, reminding him of fire. It went well with her sudden, fiery attitude. "Fili, Legolas, and now you," she ticked off on her fingers, a furious expression on her face. "There's not a single straight boy in my life. Nobody wants _me._"

Kili was momentarily baffled. He'd had no idea that Fili was gay. He didn't ponder the new information for long, though, since it was definitely not the time or place to be worrying about it.

"Listen to me, Tauriel," he spoke firmly, dragging her full attention back to him. "That is not true. Despite what you think, Legolas is _not gay_. He's told you that a countless number of times, but you choose to ignore him."

"Yes he is," she retorted. "I know he is."

Kili tried to suppress his eye-roll, but considering the annoyed look she shot him, it hadn't worked very well. "And how do you know this? I barely know the guy, and I'm one-hundred percent sure that he's not. Sure, he's not the manliest person ever, but he's got it so bad for you, and you haven't even noticed."

Her eyebrows shot up so high on her forehead that Kili thought they might disappear into her hairline. "Me?" she gestured towards herself. "That's not true."

"Yes it is!" he groaned in frustration. "Tauriel, listen to me. He. Is. In. Love. With. You. I know things didn't go so well in your past, Fili told me, but that doesn't matter now. You need to move on and give that boy a chance."

Tauriel still looked skeptical, but Kili also saw something light up her eyes - a sort of repressed excitement that he hadn't seen come out of her until now. She leaned over and hugged him, suddenly looked embarrassed.

"Sorry," she mumbled into his shoulder. "I should've known. I guess I've just been blind to it, because I was hoping you'd like me. I've been denying it and convinced myself that you're straight."

"I'm not upset," he reassured her, giving her back a friendly pat. "And you shouldn't be either."

She tipped her head up to look at him, a small smile gracing her perfect lips. "What about you? Have your heart set on anyone?"  
He shook his head, avoiding eye contact.

"Well," she sighed, going back to lying her head on his shoulder. "We will just have to find you someone special."

"We'll see."

* * *

By the time Kili returned to his uncle's (which he supposed was now his home as well,) it was much later than he had hoped. After the awkwardness had dissipated between him and Tauriel, the two of them had had a great time sitting in the park, looking at the stars and discussing random things. It had been relaxing and much needed, but Kili still felt a little guilty about staying out so long.

"You still awake?" he asked quietly, tapping on Fili's bedroom door. It was cracked opened slightly, and warm light was pouring out, so he didn't think the blonde was asleep yet.

When no reply came he pushed the door open and stepped inside. Sure enough, Fili was sitting at his desk, hunkered over a large piece of sketch paper, a graphite pencil in hand, moving fluidly over the page. He didn't take any notice of Kili.

"Hey," he tapped him on the shoulder, deciding too late that it probably wasn't the best approach.

Fili nearly jumped out of his chair and turned to look up at the brunette, his blue eyes wide with surprise. "Jesus, Kili. You nearly scared me to death."

"I didn't mean to. What are you drawing?"

Fili slowly turned to look back at what he had been sketching. Suddenly a heavy flush crawled over his neck and face, and he leaned forward, trying to block out Kili's view of the paper. "Um, it's nothing."

"Nothing? I'm sure it's not 'nothing.' Let me see."

It looked as if Fili was about to argue with him, but Kili gave him a stern look, and the older boy finally leaned back, a grimace on his face.

For a moment, Kili could only stare, eyebrows lifted high. "Is that me?"

Fili gave a nod so small that Kili wasn't sure he had actually moved at all. The drawing was obviously just a sketch, hardly detailed or fleshed out at all, but the brunette still recognized his own face when he saw it. It was a pretty large drawing of him from the waist up, his hair half pulled back in a bun, wild strands falling out of it in a few places. He had a bright smile on his face and an apron on, and he was clearly looking at something off to the side of the portrait.

"Is it.. at work?"

"I got the idea the other day when I was at the coffee shop, and I've been itching to draw it ever since. I finally made myself do it today."

"It's really, really good, Fili," Kili sighed, admiring the blonde's artistic skills. If it had been anyone else he probably would've been a little self-conscious, and maybe even creeped out, but the fact that Fili had drawn him didn't bother him one bit. Maybe it was because most of Fili's art was depictions of complete strangers, or maybe it was because he simply had a special spot for the blonde in his heart. Either way, he felt incredibly honored that Fili wanted to draw him.

Shrugging, Fili replied, "It's alright."

Kili's eyebrows furrowed, confused at the depressing tone of Fili's voice. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," he replied, standing up. He wouldn't make eye contact with Kili, and he proceeded to clean up his art supplies, mumbling things under his breath. "How was your night?" he eventually asked.

Deciding to give Fili a dose of his own medicine, the brunette just shrugged. "It was alright."

"Where were you, anyway?" Fili turned on him suddenly, a fierce look on his normally-warm face.

"I told you-"

"Don't lie to me," Fili interrupted. "I could tell you were lying earlier." He stepped closer, a calculating look in his eyes. "And you smell like Tauriel."

The brunette chose not to respond.

"So you were with her," Fili smiled, but it was anything but kind.

"What of it? She's my friend. I was talking to her before I'd even met you."

"Yeah, and she seems to have some sort of undying devotion to you, and you've barely known each other for a month." Fili retorted. "I would even go as far as to say she's head over heels for you. I don't know if you've noticed."

Letting out a long sigh, Kili sat on the bed. He wasn't in the mood for this at all and sort of regretted coming into Fili's room. "Listen, I'll be honest with you. She definitely had a crush on me, but I had no idea! I thought we were just supposed to be hanging out as friends, but then she tried to lay some moves on me, and things got really awkward… I had no idea!"

"Then why did you lie about where you were going?"

A sudden anger flared up inside of Kili. "I don't know! Why are you so worried about it anyway? It's my life. I have every right to do what I want. It's not like you're jealous. You don't want her!"

A hurt look crossed Fili's face. "What? What do you mean by that?"

"Fili, I know you're gay. Tauriel told me."

Brief rage flashed over the blonde's face, but Kili continued before he could say anything.

"And don't be upset, because she didn't mean to! And I'm pretty sure she thought I already knew. It's not her fault."

Fili's rigid posture sagged, and he sat down on his bed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "It sounds like you turned her down."

"I did."

Blue eyes looked up and met his. They were swimming with some sort of intense, unidentifiable emotion. "Why?"

"It's like you said when I questioned your painting of her," he pointed at said painting, remembering Fili's words very clearly in his head. It all made sense now. "She's not my type."

The blonde's eyes grew unbelievably wide, and before Kili had any idea what was happening, Fili was on his feet and standing incredibly close to him. "What did you say?"  
"She's not my t-"

Kili was unable to finish his sentence, as he was promptly cut off by the blonde's lips, which were suddenly melding to his own.

* * *

**Wehhhh! What do you guys think so far? I'm starting to really feel sorry for these boys. At first, I wasn't that devoted to this story, but now I'm beginning to really care. I guess we will see what happens next...**


	10. Relief

**So this took a little longer to write than I had expected. Hopefully the pacing is okay, because when I was editing it felt a little quick, so I tried to slow it down, but I don't know how well that worked.**

**Anyway, I don't know if this chapter will be unexpected and surprising, or if you guys saw it coming. Let me know after you read it! :D**

**Hope you like it. Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 10

Relief

_Fili_

Fili felt out of control, as if his body had developed a separate mind of it's own. His body was desperately grasping onto Kili - kissing Kili - but his mind was screaming and protesting. What on earth was he doing? He'd spent weeks swearing to himself that he wouldn't cave to his own desires and ruin his new friendship, yet here he was, doing exactly that.

The worst part was that Kili didn't even respond. The brunette remained stiff in Fili's grip. Fili even would've felt better if he had just pulled away, but instead, he was going to have to be the one to end it, and he wasn't sure how to.

Eventually, after what felt like a painful eternity, control over his body returned, and he hastily pulled back, taking quick steps until the back of his knees hit the bed. He sat heavily on it.

Kili still didn't move and stood staring dumbly at the blonde, as if he wasn't fully aware of what had just taken place.

Fili felt his eyes fill with tears.

"Oh my god," he gasped, bringing a hand up to cover his mouth in shock and shame. "I'm sorry, Kili. I'm so, so sorry. Sorry, Kili, sorry."

The brunette shook his head, silencing Fili, and then he stepped towards him, opening his mouth as if to speak, but the blonde stopped him.

"No, Kili. Don't… don't s-say anything." His voice broke, and he pushed himself of the bed and strode out of the room, wiping angrily at the hot tears that were now streaming down his face. He couldn't see anything at all and was surprised when he actually made it into the bathroom, slamming the door shut.

Taking a moment to breath, Fili leaned against the bathroom counter and looked at himself in the mirror. He was a wreck; his eyes were bloodshot, his beard was scruffier than usual and partly wet, due to the tears that had caught in it, and his hair was an absolute disaster, hanging around his shoulders in limp, tangled strands. The look reminded Fili of a younger version of himself, back when he'd been into some not-so-great things. He wasn't that man anymore, though. He refused to be.

Eventually he ended up on the floor, hugging his knees to his chest and trying to decide what to do. He couldn't stay there; he couldn't bear to look at Kili again, and the brunette had nowhere to go. Nor did Fili think he should _have _to go anywhere. No. Fili would leave.

He weighed his options. Either he was going to have to go to Tauriel's or Legolas,' neither of which he particularly wanted to see in this state. On one hand, he preferred Tauriel, because he was closer to her and she would be more of a comfort, but on the other, Legolas wouldn't pry and ask as many questions as she would. It was a matter of how much he wanted to confess.

* * *

"Fili? What are you doing here?"

Half an hour later, after sneaking quietly downstairs and out of the house, Fili was standing on Legolas' doorstep. Obviously his friend hadn't expected him, but then again, why would he? It was nearly 10:00 at night, on a weekday, and Fili hadn't given him any warning.

Fili opened his mouth but couldn't reply.

"Are you okay?" Legolas continued, stepping forward a bit to look at his face closer. "You look like a mess. What happened?"

"Can we not talk about it?" Fili hated how small and weak his voice sounded, still thick with tears. "I just need a place to stay."

Legolas nodded and stepped aside, gesturing for him to come in, no questions asked. Once the door was shut and locked again, Legolas and Fili made their way through the dark house and upstairs to the bedroom, not speaking a single word the whole way. Once upstairs, Fili was also handed a pair of flannel pajama pants, which were actually his.

"Go change," his friend demanded. "You don't want to sleep in jeans, and you left these here the last time you stayed the night."

Nodding, he took the pants and changed into them, thankful for Legolas' ability to treat him so normally. He'd never had very many friends, but the two he had meant the world to him. He couldn't have asked for two better people in his life.

After changing, the two of them settled down to watch a movie, since Legolas could clearly tell that Fili wasn't going to explain his random appearance. However, it wasn't long after the film had begun that Legolas fell asleep, leaving Fili to his own devices.

If he was being honest with himself, the one thing Fili wanted was a drink. He hadn't had even a sip of alcohol in months, and he'd actually been doing really well until now. The need was burning in his veins, screaming at him to drown his woes, to numb it all. He knew it wasn't rational - that he should solve his problem some other way - but he was an addict, and there was simply nothing else he could think of doing.

Being as quiet as possible, Fili slid off the bed and cracked open the door, effectively squeezing out of the room without waking up his friend. He took the stairs two at a time, knowing exactly where he was headed, just hoping that Lara wasn't still awake. He really didn't want to get caught.

Once Fili reached the liquor cabinet, which was actually quite large and took up a good portion of a wall in the dining room, he knelt down and cracked open one of the cupboards, nearly crying again at the sight that met his eyes. Everything he needed was right there, and even though he knew it was terribly wrong, he snatched up a bottle of tequila, grimacing at the taste he knew was about to come, but knowing it would hit him fast, which was exactly what he was looking for.

There was slight hesitation at first. Fili couldn't help but think of how disappointed his family and friends would be if they found out, but Legolas didn't actually know about his past with alcohol. He was Fili's only friend that had remained in the dark about the whole thing, for which he was thankful. At least there was someone who didn't know how fucked-up he was.

Without any further ado, the blonde screwed the top off of the bottle and tipped it back, swallowing as much of the golden liquid as he could, as quickly as he could. After a few gulps, he set the bottle down, choking slightly and wiping at his lips. The burn was almost unbearable, and he'd never liked the taste of tequila to begin with. It also didn't help that his body hadn't consumed any alcohol in so long, and the dizzying effects hit him quickly, making him want to throw up. Instead, he picked the bottle up and tipped it back once more.

He continued on for a while, until he was fairly sure that his liver would fail completely, and then he tossed the bottle aside, probably spilling the rest of its contents across the carpeted floor, and then laid back, allowing the drink to do it's job.

It wasn't long at all before Fili felt like a completely numb, dizzy puddle of goo. The room was tilting around him, and every time he tried to move his head it would spin at such a high velocity that he couldn't make out a single, solid object. He knew he couldn't stay there, lying in the middle of the dining room, but also wasn't sure if he could make it back to Legolas' bedroom. The best he could do was try.

Groaning with the effort, Fili rolled over onto his stomach and eventually was able to get up on his hands and knees. He couldn't make out anything, but he still had a slight sense of feeling, so he began crawling in the direction that he thought would get him back to the staircase. It took every ounce of effort to make it, and he eventually felt the rise of a step under his hand, but at that moment he realized it was also the end of his journey; there was no way he'd be able to make it up the stairs.

Accepting defeat, he laid his head down on the bottom stair, golden hair fanning out across it, like a halo, mocking him for his poor control and behavior. He wasn't at all looking forward to what morning would bring, but he tried not to think about that as he let his eyes slide shut.

Sleep took him swiftly, bringing with it a blissful, dreamless escape.

* * *

_Kili_

Once Fili had stormed out of the bedroom, Kili stood staring at the wall in absolute confusion. He literally had no clue what had just happened, and it was taking a while to wrap his head around.

One thing was for sure: Fili had just kissed him, and although it had been completely unexpected and sudden, he had really liked it. Kili was a bit upset about how short-lived it had been, considering the blonde hadn't exactly given him much time to process what was happening and respond, but he had still loved it, nonetheless, because it meant that Fili had feelings for him, which was all that Kili really wanted.

He'd honestly been pining over the guy for a couple of weeks, and even though he'd tried to be subtle, he was well aware that he'd been caught staring more than a few times. He couldn't help it; Fili, between his glowing skin, golden hair and perfect dimples, was one of the most beautiful sights he had ever laid his eyes on. How could he not stare? And it wasn't just his looks, either. Recently, Kili had been getting to know the blonde really well, and he was starting to see that Fili had some demons in his past that he was hiding, but he was also seeing a kind, loving person, who was fiercely dedicated to his friends and family.

The two of them had also found that they had a lot in common. They had, generally speaking, the same taste in music, film and even food. They also had a lot of traits that went really well together. While Fili loved creating art, Kili loved to view it, critique it and try to understand it. Kili had a passion for the kitchen, while Fili had a passion for consuming whatever came out of the kitchen. They got along famously and went together like bread and butter. There was no denying that.

Once Kili had gotten over his initial shock, the brunette strode across the hallway and back into his room. He could see a light shining from under the bathroom door as he crossed the short distance, and considered checking on Fili, but didn't want to upset the blonde anymore than he already had.

Kili quietly shut the door to his bedroom, not even bothering to turn on the light, and walked over to lay down on his new bed. The mattress was firm and supportive, causing him to exhale a breath of relief as he laid down, stretching each limb the best he could before slumping bonelessly.

There was a soft light coming through the blinds that covered the window, illuminating the room just enough for Kili to see. He wasn't going to lie to himself - he could not, and knew he would not, stop thinking about Fili. He was worried about him, after seeing the horror stricken look that had skittered across his beautiful features. He was hoping that the older boy would soon calm down and come talk to him, because Kili wanted nothing more than to sort out this situation and give Fili what both of them wanted.

Never before had Kili felt so strongly. Ordinarily he would be too shy or scared to jump into a relationship so quickly, but Fili was different. He'd never felt about anyone the way he felt about Fili, and the connection they had gave him the strength to man up and take what he wanted, as long as the blonde would give him the chance to do so.

Scratching at his head, Kili glanced around the bare room, trying to decide what to do. The night had left his mind entirely jumbled. Between Tauriel and Fili, Kili had never felt so confused in his entire life, but it wasn't necessarily a bad thing. He'd sorted out his relationship with Tauriel, and now that he knew how Fili felt, he thought he should be able to do the same with him, but something was nagging at him. He had a strange feeling about the blonde, leaving his stomach a little uneasy.

Rolling over, the brunette dismissed his gut feeling. He hadn't actually known Fili for that long, after all, and just because he felt like something was wrong didn't meant that it was. Fili's strange behavior could've all been due to nerves, and if Kili went and made a big deal out of the situation, it would only make him look like a fool. No, it was better to just let the blonde simmer down until morning, and then he and Fili would be able to talk things out.

As Kili fell asleep, he could've sworn he'd heard the front door of the house open and close, but passed it off as nothing more than a dream.

* * *

**Well then. We'll see what happens when good ol' Leggy finds his friend passed out on the stairs. Fun fun!**

**Let me know what you guys think! Critique is welcomed, as are thoughts and suggestions! Thank you so much for reading. I love you all. 3**


	11. Choking

**Yay! I just finished writing this chapter and decided to just post it without even re-reading it, so hopefully it's not completely bonkers.**

**Thanks so much to FiliKiliThorinForever (on Archive Of Our Own) for giving me some of the ideas and inspiration for this chapter! It turned out a little more interesting than it would've otherwise, and I hope you all really like it. Enjoy!**

** /users/FiliKiliThorinForever/pseuds/FiliKiliThorinForever**

* * *

Chapter 11

Choking

_Fili_

Fili cracked his eyes open to find himself in a very dim-lit, unfamiliar room. It smelled funny, and caused his stomach to churn in discomfort. Everything he could see was white, and the more he looked around, seeing what he could in his peripheral vision, he began to recognize the place more and more, and he didn't like what he saw.

He was also very uncomfortable. He way lying flat on his back, which was _never _the way he slept (for good reason,) and his throat felt scratchy and raw, as if he had swallowed shards of glass. In fact, everything was beginning to feel _too _familiar, and he didn't like that one bit.

"About time you woke up."

Fili turned his head to the left, wincing in pain, to find Legolas sitting in a chair next to his bed. He'd never seen his friend looking so messy; his platinum hair was ratty, dark bags hung under his bloodshot eyes, and he was still in his pajamas. To be fair, though, Fili was pretty sure he looked a lot worse, if how he felt was anything to go by.

"What happened?" he scratched out, voice hardly working. He had a feeling he knew exactly what had happened, but wanted to hear it from Legolas.

"Well," he began, "it was probably around 1:30 in the morning when I was oh-so-unpleasantly awoken by a very distraught Lara. Apparently she had gotten out of bed to use the restroom and instead had found a familiar, unconscious blonde at the bottom of our staircase. At first I was sure she was going crazy, but then when I realized you weren't in the bedroom, I followed her downstairs, and sure enough, there you were, snoozing like a real drunk."

Fili groaned.

"Actually," Legolas continued, "I take that back. When I normally picture a drunk, I imagine some wasted bloke in a pub, slumped in a corner over a pint of ale, sleeping like a very large, smelly, disgusting baby, rather than one of my best friends lying at the bottom of my own staircase in an alcohol-induced coma, choking on his own vomit. You're just lucky that Lara is very good with a mop, considering you spilt a good amount of tequila on the floor, and that my father didn't wake up and turn an already horrific situation into an even worse one. And of course, after all of that, I had to drive said 'best friend' to the hospital, because I couldn't bear to watch him die."

"Legolas," Fili croaked, unable to listen to anymore, "I'm sorry."

"I should think so," he responded sternly. "First you show up on my doorstep, looking like you've been bawling your eyes out for days, and then after refusing to tell me what is wrong, you raid my liquor cabinet and nearly kill yourself. What is wrong with you?"

"Nothing. It won't happen again."

Legolas looked like he was about ready to strangle his friend, but Fili continued talking. "You didn't tell Thorin or Bilbo did you?"

"No," Legolas shook his head. "I figured that unless you were actually dying, it was your own problem to deal with telling them. I did tell one person, though…"

"Oh, God," Fili sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. "Not Tauriel?"

"Yes, Tauriel. You need someone more vocal than myself to sort you out."

"Speaking of vocal, what did they do to my fucking throat? I feel like I've been in the middle of a sandstorm for ten years."

Legolas crossed his arms, giving Fili an annoyed look. "Welcome to the world of alcohol poisoning. A small case of hypothermia, unconsciousness, and of course you, like I said, were choking on your own vomit, so they had no choice but to pump your stomach, since you wouldn't wake up. A giant tube being shoved down your throat can't feel too good."

Instead of responding, Fili went back to staring at the ceiling of his hospital room and let out a long sigh. Little did Legolas know that Fili had dealt with Alcohol poisoning on numerous occasions, although he couldn't say that it had ever left him feeling quite that bad. And the worst part was that he was already feeling the need to drink again.

Before he knew it, his stomach twisted painfully, and luckily Legolas was prepared and held a bucket out for him as he leaned over the side of the bed and spilled the remaining contents of his stomach, which wasn't much. He felt sweat begin to bead on his forehead, and Legolas somehow felt enough sympathy for him to reach out and brush his hair off of his face and out of the way. Fili had never felt so much gratitude towards someone in his life.

Shortly after he had finished practically dry-heaving, he heard the door open and both of the blonde men looked up to find Tauriel striding loudly towards them, her face shaded red with pure rage, directed completely towards Fili.

"Tauriel," Fili greeted weakly, laying back against his pillows.

"I'll never forgive you for this," she hissed, leaning towards him. He could hardly bear to look into her eyes - they were filled with so much sorrow and anger. "What would Bilbo and Thorin say? How hurt do you think they would be?"

Fili felt tears well up in his eyes, and he looked away from her, towards the window. The sun still hadn't come up, meaning it was still very early in the morning. All three of them should've still been in bed, resting peacefully. Why did he always have to screw things up. "Please don't tell them," he whispered thickly.

"I won't, as long as you promise to sober up again. You can't let this one slip-up control you."

"Again?" Legolas questioned. "This has happened before?"

Tauriel barely spared him a glance. "Yes. I'll explain later." Then she turned back to Fili. "Just tell me why you did it? We've all noticed the way you've been acting lately, and Legolas told me that you were a mess when you showed up last night. Tell me what's wrong."

Shaking his head, Fili responded, "No, I can't tell you. It's not important, and I'm taking care of it on my own."

"You're obviously not!" Tauriel retorted, sitting down on the edge of his bed. He still wouldn't look at her. "Getting wasted isn't taking care of it! It's not the answer to all of your problems, Fili. You need to find a different outlet. I wish you would've came and talked to me, or even Legolas. We're your friends. We're here for you."

Fili's lips trembled and hot tears spilled down his face. His breathing shallowed and he began to take tiny gulps of air, trying to steady his breathing and not completely break down. "I know." Speaking the words did him in, causing him to completely break down into harsh sobs. "I know you're always there for me, and I should come to you, but I couldn't help it!"

Tauriel reached out, and he responded, leaning forward so she could wrap her arms around him and allow his tears to soak into the shoulder of her shirt, wetting it quickly. "I know, Fili. It will all be okay, you will see. We are going to work through this together."

* * *

_Kili_

Kili woke up the next morning feeling optimistic. After a long, deep sleep, he was more than ready to confront Fili and fix things between the two of them. He hopped out of bed and changed into the most clean, grey tee shirt he could find and pulled on a pair of soft, black sweatpants over his boxer briefs. He wanted to look somewhat nice but not like he was over-doing it. He had just woken up, after all; he couldn't look too good.

After changing his clothes and grimacing at his ratty hair, he raced down the stairs two at a time, the smell of breakfast making him move even faster. It was going to be such a good morning!

"Morning, Kili," Bilbo greeted, turning the temperature down a little on the stove. "How was your first night sleeping in your new bedroom?"

"Great, actually," Kili smiled, taking a seat on a stool at the counter. "The bed is super comfortable. I slept like a baby."

"Glad to hear it," the short man replied, just as a sleepy-looking Thorin entered the room and began to pour himself a cup of coffee.

"Do you know if Fili is up yet?" Kili asked, trying hard not to sound too eager.

"Actually, he's with Legolas," came Thorin's reply. When Kili turned his head to look at the older man, cups clutched around his mug of steaming liquid, he could see a clear look of confusion on his face. "I went into his room this morning to wake him up, and when I saw he wasn't there I tried calling him, but he never answered the phone. So then I tried Legolas, and sure enough, he'd wandered over there last night. It's kind of strange that he didn't even bother leaving a note."

Bilbo shook his head, drying his hands on a hand towel. "He's an adult, Thorin. He doesn't actually have to tell us where he goes, if he doesn't want to."

"I know, but that's just the sort of boy Fili is. He always lets us know."

Kili's eyebrows dropped into a frown, his excited mood instantly punctured. He knew why Fili was with Legolas; he had clearly upset the blonde enough to make him leave the house entirely. If Kili had known how upset he'd been, he never would've left him alone. He would've made sure to talk to him before going to bed.

* * *

For the rest of the day Kili couldn't help but dwell over Fili's absence. Bilbo had kept him busy with some housework, and he'd even had a short shift at the coffee shop, but nothing he did could distract him from that same twisting gut-feeling he'd been having since the previous night. He was worried about Fili and wasn't sure why, but he knew the only way to reassure himself that he was okay was to see the blonde with his own eyes.

It wasn't until nearly 6:30 when Fili walked through the door. Kili was sitting in the living room, curled up on the sofa, trying to read a book, when he heard the door slam shut and heavy footsteps tread through the entryway and towards the stairs. Kili glanced over the back of the couch, and from where he was sitting he could see the blonde - and god, did he look terrible.

Between his noticeably blood shot eyes and the slump in his posture, he looked like the epitome of depression. But it wasn't only that - his hair was tangled and matted in places, as if he had spent much of the day sleeping, and there were heavy, dark bags under his eyes. His skin was paler than usual, and where there was usually so much life and energy, there seemed to be a dark aura surrounding him, sucking in all the surrounding life.

"Fili?" the brunette called from where he sat, hoping the blonde would notice him and come talk. Thorin and Bilbo weren't home, and it gave the two of them the perfect chance. Fili did, in fact, notice him, but all he did was give him a sad look before making his way up the stairs and disappearing again. Kili couldn't believe it. He knew the guy was upset, but he didn't expect him to just completely ignore him, and he most certainly hadn't expected to see him looking the way he was, so sad and devoid of emotion.

Setting down his book on the coffee table, Kili stood up and made to follow the older boy up the stairs. By the time he reached Fili's bedroom door, however, he found it locked, and there was no noise coming from inside.

"Fili," he murmured, tapping on the door. "I know you're in there. Please let me in so we can talk. I know I upset you, but it wasn't on purpose. You didn't give me any time to react; I was shocked. Can we try again?"

No reply came.

"Please?"

Still nothing.

Kili turned and slid down, coming to rest on the floor with his back against the door. He gripped his hair tight in his hands. It was starting to get really long, well past his shoulders, and he was definitely due for a cut. Not that it mattered. Nothing would matter to him until Fili replied to his pleading words.

"Fili, hiding in there isn't going to solve your problems. We need to talk."

The blonde remained silent, though. He didn't seem intent on cooperating any time soon, so Kili gave up and hugged his legs to his chest, allowing his head to rest on his knees. If Kili really focused, he could've swore he heard quiet sobs coming from inside the room to his back, but there was simply nothing he could do, except wait.

* * *

For the next five days, Fili didn't speak a single word with Kili. The brunette was nearly distraught, trying to catch his attention every chance he got, but nothing he could do was good enough. The older boy was gone most of the time, and when he would come home it would either be very late at night or very early in the morning, and at the times when the two _would _run into each other, Fili would just pass by the brunette as if he didn't even see him. Kili felt invisible.

It was one morning, when Kili was up for a very early opening shift for work, that he finally got the blonde to speak.

Fili appeared to just be getting home, and he looked worse than ever. Kili was pretty sure that he hadn't changed his clothes in at least three days, and it looked as if he hadn't slept for three days, either. His beard was definitely longer than usual, and his eyes looked dead. He had opened the front door just as Kili was walking out, and the younger boy seized his chance, grabbing Fili by the collar of his coat, holding him hostage on the front steps.

"Fili, what the hell?" he tried not to yell. "You've been ignoring me for almost a week, you stay out all night, and it doesn't look like you've had any sleep, or even a shower for that matter. Bilbo and Thorin are worried about you, and so am I."

The blonde shrugged, making Kili even more angry, causing him to give Fili a small shake. "Fili! Stop acting so uncaring. I know you love your family, so why won't you tell us what you've been up to? You look so awful, too."

"I've just been sick," Fili finally rasped out, avoiding eye contact with the brunette. He didn't even look like the same person Kili had first met and come to care for.

"If you were sick you wouldn't be out partying every night."

"Who says I'm out partying every night?" Fili snapped, finally yanking free of Kili's grip. He shoved past him and inside, a heavy drag to his feet.

"What else could you possibly be doing?" Kili called to his retreating form. As usual, the blonde gave him no response, so he stepped outside, slamming the door behind him and muttering profanities under his breath.

* * *

The first time Kili finally began to understand what was going on was when he received a rather frantic phone call from Tauriel. The two of them had been talking a lot lately, although he hadn't actually seen her since their picnic in the park. He figured it had something to do with their troubled friend. The phone call came on the same day that Kili had caught Fili sneaking back into the house so early in the morning.

"Kili?" Tauriel spoke when Kili picked up the phone, not even giving him the chance to say hello. Her voice held a strong note of fear, and he could've sworn that she sounded choked up.

"Yeah?"

There was a long pause.

"You need to go get Fili," she finally sobbed. "I can't help him anymore. He won't let me help him, but I think he'll listen to you."

Kili was already grabbing the keys to the Jeep. It was fairly late at night, and Thorin and Bilbo were already sleeping. Even though he didn't have a vehicle, Kili did happen to have his license. Everyone in his orphanage had been taught to drive and given their license, in case they were ever to need it or happened to get a car, which of course most of them would.

"Where is he? What's wrong?"

"I'll give you the address," she hiccuped. "He went to this party, and I followed him there, without him knowing, hoping I would be able to drag him out, but he wouldn't listen to me. I even tried to get Legolas to help me, but there's only so much we could do. He's still there, and I'm so scared for him, Kili. Please, you have to help him!" Her voice rose higher and higher in pitch as she spoke, hysterics taking over. Kili almost had to hold the phone away from his ear.

"Tauriel, I promise I'm going to get him out of there. I'll grab a pen and paper really quick. What is the address?"

* * *

**How did you all like it? Please let me know in the comments.**

**I love all of you. Thanks for reading!**

**Until next time... 3**


	12. Crashing

**Hey, all! So I've been visiting some friends in Los Angeles for the last few days, and i haven't had a whole lot of time to write or anything, but I busted out the end of this chapter this morning and thought you guys deserved to have it ASAP, so here it is! I hope you like it!**

* * *

Chapter 12

Crashing

_Fili_

Fili was flying high. He could only remember accepting two drinks from the creepy host of the party he was at, but due to the heavy fog in his head, it had to have been more. The girl next to him was going on and on about some boy that had just dumped her, but to be honest, Fili didn't give one shit about anything she was saying. He had his own problems.

The party wasn't very spectacular. It consisted of about twenty college-aged boys and girls doing everything from sipping on cheap beer to shooting up heroin. He didn't know a single person there, but it was better that way. He didn't want anyone he knew to see him in such a state.

Fili accepted another drink and slugged it down, most of it missing his mouth and pouring onto his shirt. There was a sort of rush coursing through his body, that didn't usually come from drinking alcohol, and it almost felt pleasurable, but it also kind of wanted to make him throw up. He again considered the amount of alcohol he had consumed, still unable to recall more than two or three drinks. Something was wrong.

He turned to the annoying girl. "Do you know how many drinks I've had?" he interrupted her rant.

"What?" she sneered, clearly annoyed.

"How many drinks have I had?"

She rolled her eyes. "How should I know? Do you think I'm keeping tabs? I would think _you__'__d _know, because I don't actually think you've had that much - not too hard to keep track."

Fili slumped to his right on the couch, propped up by his elbow. "Something's wrong with me," he mumbled, vision swimming. It almost felt as if he was fighting against a sort of blissful darkness but knew he couldn't succumb to it. He glanced down at the arm he was leaning on and saw a large bruise forming on the inside of his forearm.

"The Fuck?" he moaned, squinting at the bluish-purple patch of skin. Hesitantly, he brushed the spot with a finger and winced at how badly it stung.

He thought for a while, trying to figure out where he would've gotten such a bad bruise. He felt so numb, and his brain didn't quite want to work, but after a few minutes it hit him.

"Holy shit," he said out loud. "I fucking shot up."

The girl must've heard him, even though he was no longer talking to her. "Actually, Josh did it. He thought you were being a little bit too high strung. He thought it would be good for you."

"Good for me?" He couldn't believe it. He'd stayed away from drugs, besides maybe marijuana once or twice, his entire life. He'd never had allowed this.

Josh was the host of the party - a really shady guy that Fili had only ever talked to a couple of times. He didn't really throw the best parties, but there was always plenty of alcohol, so Fili wouldn't complain. From where he was seated on the couch, he could see that Josh had moved to the corner of the room, where he sat on the floor with a couple other friends, talking lowly. Fili stood up from the couch as best as he could, only swaying a little once he was up, and stumbled over. At least he still had control over his motor skills. Obviously there weren't too many drugs in his system.

"Hey, man, what the fuck?"

Josh turned to look up at where Fili was standing, a strange look on his face - almost a smirk. The boy had short, dark brown hair, lightly tanned skin and dark green eyes. Fili would've almost found him attractive if he hadn't been so angry. "What?"

Fili wasn't sure what to say, so he just spat, "I don't do heroin."

"Oh, god, would you just get over it?" Josh responded, rolling his eyes. "You're too uptight, dude. You needed it."

Shaking his head, Fili tried to think of a good threat, but nothing was coming to mind. He just wanted to go to sleep.

"You don't look too good," Josh continued, standing up, looking far too sober for Fili's comfort. "Why don't you come with me?"

Before he even had the chance to answer, Josh grabbed him by the arm and began dragging him towards the back of the house, where all the other rooms were. He was soon pulled into a dark bedroom, and without even bothering to turn on the light, Josh led him to the bed and sat him down.

"Here, you can just go to sleep."

"I don't want to go to sleep," Fili replied, suddenly confused. Why would this guy drug him up just to put him to sleep? He barely even knew the guy.

"You should rest," was the response that came.

"No."

"Fili, just lie down."

Fili was utterly creeped-out. "Stop talking to me like you know me. We aren't friends."

"But we could be." And with that, the other boy pushed Fili back on the bed, into a lying position. Fili, not having a ton of energy to fight back, could only let it happen. He also figured that maybe if he just went along with the whole sleeping business, the guy would leave him alone.

Fili did not, however, expect Josh to climb up onto the bed and straddle his chest. He began to protest and tried pushing the other boy off, but it was no use. He simply wasn't strong enough.

"Now, hold still for a moment, or else this isn't going to end well," Josh said, turning so that his back was to Fili's face, still sitting on his chest. Fili felt one of his arms being grabbed, and then there was a tight pressure. Before he could ask what he was doing, Fili felt a sudden sting in his forearm, and suddenly he knew what was happening.

"Get off of me, you fucker!" he tried to shout, but it only came out as a grumble. The stupid son of a bitch was drugging him _again, _and Fili knew it wouldn't go quite as well this time. He just hoped it wasn't enough to kill him.

It didn't take long for the drug to set in, and Fili went completely numb. He almost felt happy, but there was something nagging at the back of his mind, although he couldn't remember what it was.

"There," Josh sighed, sliding off of Fili's chest to sit next to him on the bed. He dragged Fili up a little bit, so that his feet weren't hanging off, and then proceeded to unzip the jacket Fili was wearing.

"'m cold," was all Fili could grumble out in a protest.

"Shhhh." Josh continued to inch the zipper down, until he was able to spread the jacket open and push it off of Fili's shoulders. It took some effort, but eventually the whole thing came off.

At that moment, Fili expected the other boy to leave him there, but instead he began inching Fili's grey, beer-stained shirt off of his body. Fili's mind was screaming, not understanding what was happening, but it was an all-too-familiar situation. This wasn't going to happen, not to him.

Fili shook his head the best that he could, only resulting in a slight twitch. The boy obviously noticed, though, because he spoke.

"Come on, Fili. I've seen the way you've looked at some of the guys at my parties. Don't even try to lie. I know you're a fag, and I've never been with a guy. It could be interesting. Plus, you're kind of pretty, for a dude," he said, pulling Fili's shirt all the way off and once again moving to straddle him, except this time he sat down heavily on Fili's hips. Then he reached down and twirled a few strands of Fili's golden hair around a finger.

Fili felt a hot tear slip out of an eye, rolling down his face to drip onto the bed. He didn't want this at all, but there was no way he'd be able to fight back.

"Don't cry," the brunette said in a mocking voice. "You'll like it."

He rolled his hips down onto Fili's, and the blonde cursed himself at the way his body reacted.

"See? I can feel you getting hard for me. You want this."

Fili tried to shake his head again, but it was even more pathetic than the last attempt. He could hardly move at all.

Josh, clearly not noticing, or maybe not caring about, Fili's discomfort, slid off of him again, but this time it was to undo his pants. Nimble fingers quickly undid the button and slowly pulled down the zipper as he grinned up at Fili the entire time. The blonde felt like he was going to be sick.

Josh pulled Fili's pants down, his socks and shoes coming off with them, and left Fili lying in nothing but his black boxer briefs. Josh stood up and looked down on him, clearly satisfied with himself.

"I wasn't lying when I said I've never been with a guy before, but you caught my eye." He looked the blonde up and down, from head to toe, giving Fili the chills. "You're gorgeous," he continued, "but I bet you'd look even better without these." Josh leaned over him, hooking his index fingers into the top of Fili's underwear.

_Oh God, no! _Fili's mind screamed. He tried his best to protest and push the other man back, but it was futile. He couldn't move at all.

"What should I do with you first?" the brunette grinned, inching Fili's waistband down slowly. "Maybe I should start out easy. Or, perhaps, maybe not. Should we just cut straight to the chase?" A few more inches of skin appeared, and Fili sucked as much air as he could through his teeth. "I bet you always bottom. How many other men have you let sink into that tight, hot body of yours?"

"Son of a bitch!"

Josh was suddenly wrenched away from Fili's shaking body, and the sound of fists meeting flesh filled the room. The blonde was unable to make out the new person that had entered the room, but he somehow knew he was saved from whatever Josh had planned on doing to him. The tension that had been previously filling him drained from his body, leaving him a puddle of mush.

He watched the silhouettes of the two figures slam into the nightstand, sending the lamp crashing to the floor, and at that moment, Fili finally let the blissful darkness take him.

* * *

_Kili_

Kili could sense that something was wrong the moment he stepped into the house. There was definitely a party going on, but it didn't look like much fun, and there weren't that many people there. Everyone sitting in the living room had given him a dirty look, but he ignored them, glancing around and quickly realizing that Fili wasn't there. That was all that mattered.

"Have you seen a blonde guy? He's a bit shorter than me, has a little bit of ginger in his beard," he asked a girl that had been sitting on the couch, complaining loudly to anyone that would listen.

"Sure thing. He went back there with Josh a few minutes ago," she replied, pointing towards a hallway that led further back into the house.

"Thank you."

Kili made his way down the hallway, pushing doors open as he went. He witnessed one guy peeing, who didn't seem to care at all, and another couple doing some rather unspeakable things to each other in one of the bedrooms. Normally Kili would've been more than a little embarrassed, but right now nothing mattered except for Fili.

At long last he came to another doorway, but the door was still open for the most part, so Kili slid inside quietly. It was dark, but there were definitely people in there, and through the small amount of light coming through the window, Kili could tell that the one on the bed was definitely Fili, and there was a tall silhouette looming over him. As he stepped in the room, he caught the end of what the taller man was saying.

"How many other men have you let sink into that tight, hot body of yours?"

"Son of a bitch!" Kili threw himself at the man, throwing blind punches anywhere he could get them. He was able to get a few good ones in, while the other guy was still confused and surprised, but it only lasted for a few stunned seconds before he began to fight back.

The other boy threw a fist at Kili's head, which he narrowly missed before charging forward, wrapping his arms around the other's middle, and slamming them both into the nightstand and eventually the wall. There was a crashing sound that Kili suspected was a lamp, but he didn't care. He shoved the man up against the wall, wrapping his hands around his throat in pure rage.

The guy had looked pretty tall standing over Fili, but now that Kili gripped him, standing face to face, he could see that the boy was a couple inches shorter than himself. He wasn't bad looking, at least from what Kili could see, but he was so repulsed by the man that it wouldn't have taken a lot of convincing to make Kili kill the guy.

"Here's what's going to happen," Kili snarled, no more than an inch away from the other man's face. "You're going to stay right here, and I'm going to get Fili and leave. I swear to god, if you make one move in his direction, I will knock the fucking lights out of you."

The guy nodded furiously, eyes watering from the hands around his throat. Kili gave him one last glare before releasing him, and then he moved towards Fili's unmoving figure on the bed. He gently touched Fili's shoulder, hoping to rouse him from his unconsciousness, but even after a more firm shake he would not wake up. Kili checked for a pulse before turning back to the man. "What the hell did you do to him?"

"It was just a little heroin."

"A little heroin?!" Kili tried not to shout loud enough for the whole house to hear, but wasn't sure if he succeeded. "Christ, what the fuck is wrong with you? You drugged him? And then what were you going to do? Rape him?"

"He wasn't stopping me."

"Oh, really? And you don't think that was maybe because he wasn't _able _to stop you? Fili never would've wanted that."

The man chose not to reply to him, so Kili turned back to the blonde and dressed him as gently but quickly as possible, before slinging him over his shoulder and carrying him out of the room. Kili didn't meet any of the stares that followed him as he traipsed back through the living room and out of the front door. He didn't care what anyone thought. He just needed to get Fili to the hospital.

As Kili was laying Fili's body across the backseat of the Jeep, the blonde finally opened his eyes. The confusion in the blue pools was evident, but it was also clear that he recognized Kili.

"'m sorry."

"Shhh, Fili. It's okay. Just be quiet."

"Where are you taking me?" he asked, letting his eyes slide shut again.

"You need to get to a hospital."

"No, Kili, please just take me home. I'll be okay, but I don't want to go back there."

Kili didn't understand what he meant by 'back there.' Had he been to the hospital recently? They were going to have a long talk once Fili was back on his feet. "Are you sure."

All he got was a small nod in response, but he took it as a sign that Fili wasn't dying. He would be alright.

"Okay, fine. If that's what you want. But you owe me a very long explanation tomorrow. I've been worried about you."

Fili reached out, and Kili took his hand, shuddering at how cold and clammy it was. "I promise I will tell you anything," he grumbled, sounding like it took all of the energy it had just to speak those words.

Kili brushed the damp hair off of Fili's forehead, giving him a weak smile, even though his eyes were still shut. "It'll be okay, Fee. Go back to sleep."

* * *

**How did you all enjoy it? :D Hopefully there weren't too many typos.**

**Don't forget to leave Comments, Constructive Criticism, or any suggestions! Thank you all so much for reading!**


	13. Guilt

**Wehhh! So here's the big talk. I'm not sure if it turned out quite how I wanted it to, but after re-reading it about a thousand times, I decided to just post it. Let me know what you guys think.**

* * *

Chapter 13

Guilt

_Fili _

It was a long time after Fili woke up before he could remember the previous night, and when he did, he was absolutely mortified. The thought of seeing Kili again after such a happening made him want to pitch himself off the balcony, but that was no way to solve his problems. He was going to have to face Kili eventually, and he couldn't stop putting it off.

"Hey, Fili, you awake?"

Speaking of Kili, Fili lifted his eyes to the boy in question, who was standing in the doorway of his bedroom, looking tentatively towards him. His hair was still ruffled from sleep, and he was wearing nothing but a maroon tank top and a pair of boxer shorts. Fili's mouth went slightly dry.

"Yeah," he croaked out. His throat felt a little scratchy, both from his recent bad habits of alcohol and marijuana, and from having just woken up.

Kili padded across the room and sat next to him, clutching two steaming cups of tea. He handed one of them to Fili and kept the other for himself, taking a sip before he spoke. "So.. you ready to talk?"

Fili also took a sip, to buy himself some time, and almost moaned at the feeling of the hot liquid soothing his throat. "I suppose I'm as ready as I'll ever be. Do Thorin and Bilbo know?"

"I haven't told them - no one has - but due to how worried they've been about you, I'm pretty sure they have an idea."

Guilt welled up inside of Fili, almost making him want to cry. Bilbo and Thorin had done so much for him, and he was completely betraying their trust and risking his own life, which was a pretty shitty way to repay them. But he was going to sober up again. He had to, and he knew he'd also eventually have to tell them about his relapse. He felt that it was their right to know. "I'll tell them when it feels right."

Kili nodded his head in approval and gave Fili's blanket-covered legs a nudge. "That's a good idea. But right now I just want you to tell me what happened. Why did you freak out in the first place, Fili? We could've talked it out."

Fili swallowed heavily around the lump in his throat, wishing they could take the conversation a bit slower. "I just thought.. I-I guess.."

"What? What did you think?"

Fili took a shaky breath. "I just thought you were upset. I thought you'd think I was perverted and fucked-up for liking someone who's supposed to be like family to me. I thought you were rejecting me, and I guess I couldn't handle that. You could say I'm a little emotionally insecure."

"Fili, I would never reject you. You didn't give me any chance to respond." The brunette reached for Fili's hand, and held it in his own, squeezing it comfortingly. A slow blush crept across his tanned skin and his gaze became shy. "I liked it. I just needed a couple moments to process what was happening."

Relief flooded through Fili's entire being. He had freaked out for nothing and suffered through one of the most trying times of his life for no reason. "Thank you."

"No need to thank me," Kili grinned. "We can try again sometime."

Fili felt all the blood in his body rush to his face and his groin, pooling heatedly in both places, and he nearly choked on his mouthful of tea.

"But forget about that for now," Kili continued, smirking at the look on the blonde's face. "First, you need to tell me about this addiction of yours. When in the hell did you start drinking? Why didn't you tell me?"

Fili sighed. "It started when I was a lot younger. I've already been to rehab once, and let me tell you, it was not a whole lot of fun. But it definitely helped, and between it and the support from my family and Tauriel, I was able to sober up. That was almost a year ago."

"But what started it?" Kili questioned.

"It's kind of hard to talk about."

Kili squeezed his hand again. "It's okay. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. We have our whole lives. I can wait."

Stunned by Kili's words, Fili was silent for a moment. Their whole lives? Was he really serious? "No, I'll tell you. It'll feel better if I get it off of my chest."

"Haven't you talked about it before? When you went to rehab and stuff?"

Fili shook his head, blonde hair swinging. "No. Nobody knows."

A surprised look crossed the brunette's face. "You don't have to tell me."

"I want to," he replied firmly, now completely sure of it. He'd always been too scared to talk about it before, but he knew that if he got it out he'd feel much better.

"It all kind of began when I realized I was gay," he began, sitting up to look Kili in the face. He wanted to be completely open and honest. "I was going into my freshman year of high school. Before then I hadn't really thought about dating at all, so the idea hadn't come up. Of course I had checked other people out once in a while, but I thought I would get over my attraction for guys once I matured. My Freshman year, though, I knew it was permanent. I liked guys, and that was that."

"What was wrong with that?"

"Well, I was nervous about my friends finding out. Of course I didn't have a problem talking about it with Thorin and Bilbo, since they are obviously gay themselves, but all of my friends were very straight and 'popular,' and I thought they would judge me." Fili paused, trying to figure out how to continue. "That's when I fell into a short depression. I didn't drink much, but I smoked a lot of pot and went to parties. Not long after that all began, though, I met Legolas and Tauriel. They saved me from that downwards plunder, and I left my old friends to be with them, which was definitely the right choice."

Kili gave him a warm smile and set his tea down to grip Fili's hand with both of his, rather than just the one. He looked genuinely pleased about Fili's newfound friendships and what they had done for him. "Go on."

"A couple years after that I ran into my first adoptive parents."

"What were they like?" Kili asked.

"Uh, well… they did a lot of meth while they were my caregivers. They also sold it. That's how I ended up getting taken away from them. I was actually shocked that they'd been released from prison after such a short time, considering how much trouble they had been in. I'm pretty sure they had spent a lot of time trying to find me, because once they did, it was as if they had known exactly where I was. They knew all about my life - my parent's names, my new name, my friends names, what school I went to - everything."

Kili looked more than mildly concerned and scooted closer to Fili, listening intently. "Where did they find you?"

"I was on my way to Tauriel's," he mumbled, trying to hold back the tears that were attempting to form. "I wasn't able to drive back then, so I had to walk to a bus stop about a mile from the house and take it from there to her house. Sometimes Bilbo or Thorin would drive me, but they didn't always have the time. So, anyway, one night I was making my way towards the bus stop, and they cornered me out of nowhere. Both of them looked terrible, and even though I'd been taken from them at a very young age, I still knew exactly who they were." Fili felt the tears finally slip out of his eyes, and his voice broke. He wanted to stop all together and just break down, letting his body sob out all of the emotion he was feeling, but he knew he had to continue.

"Fili," Kili interrupted.

Fili raised a hand, stopping him from continuing. "It's fine," he said softly, hot tears racing down his cheeks to catch in his beard. "I need to say it."

Kili nodded, lifting one of his hands to wipe some of the wetness from the blonde's face.

"Anyway, they cornered me a short distance from the bus stop. It was fairly late, so not many people were around, and naturally, we were pretty close to an alleyway that ran between two shops. They dragged me down it and pushed me face-first into one of the walls, mocking me about myself and my life the entire time, like they had any room to speak." He wiped angrily at his face with his free hand, growing more upset by the second. "I was so scared and had no idea what they wanted. I offered money, but they simply would leave me alone. I didn't know what they had intended to do until the woman undid my pants and started touching me."

Instead of looking shocked and disgusted, like most people would, Kili just grabbed Fili's other hand, to keep him from wiping his face anymore, and then rubbed soothing circles over the back of both of his hands. It only made Fili cry harder.

"They didn't rape me - not really," he sobbed, burying his face in Kili's shoulder. "The woman just touched me, although she didn't get much of a reaction out of my body, and the man shoved his dick down my throat more than once. I was seventeen fucking years old." The anger returned to his voice.

"Fee, that's still rape," Kili sighed, running his fingers through tangled, blonde hair. "You should've told someone. They should've gone back to prison."

"I'm a male. Nobody would've believed me."

"They were meth addicts. The odds were already against them. Plus, you were underage."

Fili leaned back and looked up at Kili with sad eyes. "I didn't think anyone would've believed me. I kept it bottled up for a long time, and that was when I turned to drinking. I drowned my sorrows with alcohol for over four years before anyone made me sober up. I grew dependent on it. And when I thought you were going to reject me, I guess I just panicked and didn't know what else to do. I didn't realize how bad the situation had gotten until I was in that room with Josh. I thought he was actually going to rape me, Kili. i was so, so scared. I couldn't even fight back."

"You're okay," Kili whispered, pulling the blonde into a tight embrace, wishing he could magic away all of his sadness. "And I'm going to help you get sober again. We're going to get through this, I promise."

* * *

_Kili_

"So you don't think I'm disgusting? I didn't freak you out?"

"I could never be disgusted with you," Kili smiled, pulling back to look at Fili. "I knew you were everything I wanted the moment I laid eyes on you, as cheesy as that sounds."

Fili gave the brunette a watery smile and the flush returned to his face. He looked heartbreakingly beautiful, even with the blotchy, tear-stained cheeks and ratty hair.

Kili cupped the blonde's cheeks with his hands, his beard scratchy under his palms. Heat emanated from where the blood was rushing under his skin, and he watched as Fili's face brightened even more. "We're going to get through this."

"I know. I trust you," Fili whispered.

"Fee… can I?"

The blonde nodded.

Without wasting another second, Kili leaned forward and pressed his lips to Fili's.

It wasn't anything fancy - just a brush of lips - but to Kili it was like fireworks exploding in his entire being. He was gripped by a sudden sense of euphoria, causing him to go dizzy in the head, and his hands, which were still cupping the blonde's cheeks, increased in pressure as he tried to ground himself.

The kiss was short lived, but when they broke apart and looked at each other, both of them burst into joyous laughter. Kili memorized the moment, planning on never forgetting it as long as he lived.

"Thank you," Fili flushed. "For accepting me."

"The pleasure is mine," Kili teased with a wink, grinning cheekily at his companion.

"So we are good?"

Kili nodded and dropped his hands to grip onto Fili's again. He laced their fingers together and stared the blonde in his cerulean eyes, wishing they could stay there, in that bed, just looking at each other, forever. "Better than good."

Fili didn't respond, but dropped his gaze to their hands in embarrassment. The older boy didn't usually come off as shy. Sure, he was pretty quiet most of the time, but he always seemed relaxed and confident, at least until he'd started drinking. Kili could tell he wasn't used to situations such as these. "Does this mean I can begin properly courting you now?" Kili asked.

That reeled Fili's attention back in. "Courting me? What, are you sixty years old or something?"

"Courting is ageless, Fee. It's a tradition that will never die," Kili replied, a wide grin splitting his face. "And you're going to let me court you, whether you like it or not."

The flush returned, once again, to Fili's face. "Okay, fine," he replied. Then he gave Kili a small grin before adding, "And I like it when you call me that."

"Fee?"

The blonde nodded.

"Hmmmm, I guess I'll have to start doing it more often, then."

"I think I'd like that," Fili smiled, cheeks dimpling. Kili would never, ever get used to those perfect crescents on each side of the blonde's mouth. Nor would he get used to the perfect, golden color of his hair, or his usually well-groomed, ginger-blonde beard (which, if Kili was honest with himself, he liked it best at times like these, when Fili let it grow a little longer and scruffier,) or his short, compact body. Everything about him was artistic, and Kili felt like a very lucky critic.

"I think I'd like that. Now, why don't we go back to sleep?"

* * *

When Kili awoke that morning for the second time, something was pleasantly different. It took him quite a while to figure it out, since he was still in a sleep-like daze, but once the wheels in his brain began turning, waking up, he realized that his arms were wrapped around a certain warm body. Fili.

Kili smiled to himself and snuggled closer, pressing his face into the blonde's back. He suddenly felt so happy that he wanted to get up and shout it to the world, to dance and sing and do all things happy. It was a feeling he'd never truly experienced before.

After a few minutes, Kili became too curious to keep his face pressed against Fili's back, and he peeked over to look at the clock on the nightstand. He found, much to his shock, that it was nearly 1:00. It was pure luck that he didn't have work that day, and due to Fili's most recent lifestyle and habits, he assumed the blonde didn't have work either. It was probably hard to get many clients when you couldn't even see straight, due to daily hangovers.

"Hey, sleepy-head, wake up," he spoke, gently poking Fili in the side.

The shorter boy began to stir, blinking open red-rimmed eyes and sniffling. It was obvious that he still hadn't completely recovered from the emotional breakdown he'd had just a few hours before, but he looked a lot better still. Kili wasn't surprised that he'd slept for so long. The previous night couldn't have been a good one for Fili; between the near-rape and the non-consenting drug use, he probably wasn't feeling too hot.

"Wha time is it?" Fili grumbled, burying his face in the pillow. The blinds didn't let a lot of light into the room, but it was clearly enough to upset the blonde.

"Almost 1:00. We should probably get up," Kili responded, flipping back the blankets to climb out of bed. It was a little bit chilly in the room, and made the hairs on his arms stand on end, but he ignored it and walked around the the other side of the bed before placing a gentle hand on Fili's arm. "We've undoubtedly missed any form of breakfast, so we should probably try to catch lunch while we still can."

Kili's idea, that speaking of food would get Fili out of bed, completely backfired. Instead of rising from the pile of blankets, eager to go eat, the older boy simply shifted a little closer to the edge of the bed and promptly threw up all over the floor. Kili's appetite went out the window.

"That works too," he grimaced, moving to take a small step away from the puddle on the floor. It didn't look like Fili had eaten much the previous day, and it mostly consisted of stomach acids and what Kili assumed was whatever remained of the alcohol he'd drank the night before. "I'll be right back."

Kili went down the hall to the bathroom, unsure of what to do. He didn't want to tell Bilbo or Thorin, knowing he wouldn't be able to lie to them about the reason Fili had thrown up, so he decided to look for something he could use to clean it up himself. After a couple minutes of searching, he found mop bucket under the bathroom sink and filled it with hot water. Then he grabbed the rattiest rag he could find, which was nicer than anything he'd ever used in the orphanage, and walked back to Fili's room.

Fili was now sitting up, looking a sickly shade of white, staring at the puddle of sick on the floor. "Sorry," he mumbled, upon seeing the brunette enter the room with the bucket.

"Don't be sorry. It happens."

"I'm just sorry I drank in the first place. I'm sorry I went to that party last night. I'm sorry I didn't ever listen to you when you tried to speak to me."

"Fee," Kili interrupted, setting the bucked down. "Stop. It's okay. You've nothing to be sorry for, and I told you before - we are going to get through this. I'm going to help you, and you will get better again, and everything will be okay. Calm down."

Fili nodded, and Kili, satisfied, knelt down to clean up the mess. The smell was horrible, but generally speaking, it didn't really bother him. Ori had always told Kili that he should go into the medical field, since bodily fluids and gore never affected him much, but Kili had always shrugged off the idea, knowing he didn't have, and would never have, enough money to go to school.

After he finished, he dumped the soiled rag in the bucket and stood up, giving Fili the kindest face he could possibly muster. "See? It's all gone. It's fine. Now, let's go get you cleaned up."

Kili grabbed the bucket again, and then grabbed Fili by the arm, guiding him out of the room and down the hallway. After pushing the shorter boy into the bathroom, Kili followed him in to dump the dirty bucket water into the toilet and make sure that Fili would be alright.

"I can shower on my own, Kili."

"I know you can," he responded, stowing the bucket back under the sink. "But just remember to brush your teeth. And you really should wash that hair as well. It doesn't look like you've been taking very good care of it. Oh, and also clean under your nails. I always forget to do that."

"Okay, mother," Fili said, finally cracking a grin as he pushed Kili out of the bathroom. Some of the color had returned to his face. "I promise to clean myself thoroughly."

"Okay," Kili grinned back, stupidly, unsure of what to say.

Fili gave a short laugh before shutting the door, bringing an end to the conversation. Kili stared at the offending piece of wood, wishing he was still on the other side of it, with the blonde, but knew that he also needed to get ready for the day.

It didn't take him that long, since he didn't really need a shower. He threw on a clean pair of underwear, a long-sleeved, blue and grey striped shirt, and a pair of skinny, denim jeans. Most people would think it was far too warm of an outfit for the weather, but Kili always covered up. He was comfortable that way.

"About time one of you showed up," Bilbo said as Kili stepped out, onto the back porch, squinting through the nearly-abusive sunlight. "I thought you might've died."

"It sort of feels that way," Kili admitted, taking a seat at the table, across from the tiny man.

Bilbo had clearly been reading some sort of novel, enjoying his time in the sunlight, before Kili had come out. Now he looked up at the brunette with a fond smile. "Where's your other half?"

Bilbo had begun to refer to them this way as soon as they'd become friends. Kili assumed it was because they had hit it off so quickly, and the way Bilbo said it seemed right. Kili really did feel like Fili was his other half sometimes, and they hadn't even known each other for that long. So much had happened in such a small amount of time. "He's showering. I don't think he's actually feeling that great today. It was difficult to get him out of bed and down to the bathroom, but he really needed a good wash."

"I'm glad you got him up. I haven't seen a lot of him lately." Bilbo looked sad, and a little bit worried, and Kili had to stop himself from breaking down and telling the man everything that had been going on. Nobody was prepared for that yet, including himself, but he wasn't one to usually lie, especially to someone so caring and trusting as Bilbo.

"Anyway," the older man sighed, taking a drink of what looked like lemonade, "what are you doing today? I know it's your day off."

Kili shrugged, but seconds later his phone jingled with the sound of a new text message. When he pulled it out he could see it was Ori, demanding that Kili visit him soon. Well, that settled it.

"I suppose I'm going to go visit Ori today. He's asking to get together as soon as possible."

"Oh, yes," Bilbo nodded, picking his book back up, "I believe he has most of today off. You two haven't seen much of each other lately, it doesn't surprise me that he wants to get together."

"Who are we talking about?"

Kili turned to see Fili stepping out of the back door, hair hanging damp, but fresh, onto his shoulders. He had on a red and blue striped tank top, which of course made Kili excited, since they sort of matched, and he also wore a pair of grey chino shorts. The brunette suddenly felt like a teenager, eyeing up their high-school crush.

"Ori," Bilbo replied. "Kili was just telling me that he was going to go visit him today. And what about you? How are you feeling?"

Fili's eyes widened slightly, and he took a seat next to Kili. "What do you mean?"

"I told him you weren't feeling well," Kili spoke quickly, trying to stop anything wrong from being said. It wouldn't do well to confuse everyone. He needed to keep his lie as solid as possible.

"Oh, yeah. That." Fili sighed and leaned back in his chair, looking more tired than he should have after such a long night of rest. "I felt kind of nauseous this morning, but the shower helped quite a bit. I think I'm going to take it pretty easy today."

Bilbo didn't respond, but nodded and seemed to believe Fili's answer. Both of the young men breathed a deep sigh of relief and shared a quick, nervous glance. It was definitely going to be an interesting day.

* * *

**Let me know what you think! Comments are much appreciated! You guys are making this story happen. Thank you all so much. :D**


	14. Breathing

**Hey, everyone! Sorry it's been so long since I last posted. I've been incredibly busy, but don't worry, I have some other chapters almost ready to go!**

**So this chapter is kind of a breather. Not a lot happens in it, but I really hope you guys like it, and I hope it's not too boring! Haha :)**

**Enjoy!**

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Chapter 14

Breathing

_Fili_

After Kili had left to go meet up with Ori, Fili found himself alone with Bilbo. The two of them were in the sitting room, nursing hot cups of tea and staring awkwardly at each other. Fili always found talking to Bilbo to be a natural thing - as easy as breathing - but for the first time in his life, he found himself speechless. Guilt was eating away at him, causing all casual thoughts to swim out of his grasp.

Bilbo cleared his throat. "So. What have you been up to lately?"

Fili pretended to look confused. "What do you mean?"

A disbelieving eyebrow arched high at Fili's response. It was more than obvious that the elder didn't buy into his innocent words. "You know what I mean. You've hardly been around at all, as of late, and everyone has been worried about you. Today is the first time I've even seen you looking remotely like your normal self."

"We already discussed this," the blonde sighed, taking a sip of his tea. It burnt his tongue slightly, but he repressed any sort of response to the pain. "I'm perfectly fine, and handling everything on my own."

"Kili has been pretty upset with you."

Fili felt it like a slap to his face, and the intensity of his guilt rose measurably. Kili had been so quick to forgive him, but the blonde hadn't considered fully what he'd been doing to his family and friends. How upset had Kili been, for Bilbo to have noticed? Did the brunette truly forgive him, or was he still hurting, deep inside?

"We made up," Fili finally grumbled, face heating. He wasn't about to go into detail of how well their make-up had gone. "Everything's back to normal."

The older man stared at him for a long time before he leaned forward, setting his tea down on the coffee table, and gave Fili a firm, unreadable look, boring into the blonde with his hazel eyes. "No, it's not," he spoke in a voice that Fili had only heard once or twice. "Do you not understand how you've been making the rest of us feel - sick with worry, and as if we didn't matter - because you clearly didn't care about the rest of us while you were off doing all things mysterious. Why won't you just tell me what's going on?"

Fili couldn't respond. He had no reply for Bilbo, since he truly didn't want to lie. He'd done so much of that lately. He didn't think anyone was prepared for the truth, but then again, would they ever be?

"Well?"

His resolve broke, and Fili felt tears instantly pool and drip hotly down his face. Bilbo's angry expression softened almost immediately, and he stood and made he way around the coffee table, to kneel in front of Fili, looking up at the tear streaked-face that was now hidden behind the blonde's hands in frustration and embarrassment.

"Fili? Fili, please tell me what's wrong," Bilbo pleaded, prying Fili's hands away to look at his face. The expression of pure sorrow he found was almost shocking.

"I-i can't tell you," he sobbed, shallow breaths wracking his body.

"Yes, you can. You can tell me anything."

Fili looked at the pure honesty on Bilbo's face with his blurry vision. There wasn't an ounce of judgement within those round, pleading eyes, but the blonde still felt hesitant to say anything. It wasn't a matter of being judged. It was a matter of upsetting those he loved.

"Please," Bilbo begged.

Fili opened his mouth to speak, but it only caused his breathing to become more labored, almost to the point of panic. Eventually he was able to cough out, "I relapsed."

The older man's face changed dramatically, but he didn't actually look that surprised. The expression was one that said he knew what had been happening, but he'd hoped that it wasn't true. Fili's words had just confirmed his worst fears. "Fili…"

"You don't have to say anything. Please, I promise I'm taking care of it. Kili is going to help me."

Now surprise lit up Bilbo's face. "He knows?"

"I told him. Or - I suppose - he eventually pried it out of me. He knew something was wrong. He spent days trying to figure it out and get me to talk to him." Fili stared down at his lap, a frown on his wet face. "I should've talked to him sooner. It made me feel a lot better."

"I'm guessing he's the reason you look so much better this morning."

It wasn't a question, but the blonde nodded, mouth almost twitching up in a smile. One day, he figured, they would look back on the past couple of weeks and laugh about how stupid the whole ordeal was. One day, very far in the future, when Fili had been clean for many, many years.

Bilbo sighed and stood back up, running a small hand through Fili's hair affectionately. "You know you're going to have to speak with Thorin, right? He's been missing you a lot, Fili. You owe it to him. Even though Kili is of blood relation to him, he's still _your _father."

"I'll speak to him this evening, after he comes home from work," Fili replied, completely earnest. Now that he had told Bilbo, without receiving the epic, horrendous reaction he had expected, he felt as if telling Thorin wouldn't be too hard.

"And if you need anything - anything at all - you need to come to one of us. I know Kili said he'd help you, but we are here for you, as well. We want you to be safe and happy, and you need to trust us."

Fili stood, pulling the shorter man into a tight hug as he spoke. "I do trust you," he replied, his words muffled by Bilbo's hair.

"I love you."

"Love you too." Fili pulled back, smiling at last, and felt fresh tears come to his eyes as he looked down at his ever-loving, generous, adoptive father. Even though he had two dads, they were entirely different from each other, and Bilbo had always been the first one Fili would go to for help, or just to talk, because he was the most understanding of the two. Sometimes his reactions were strong, and he was occasionally fussy, but for the most part, he did nothing but care.

Bilbo patted the blonde on the arm and then grabbed his waist with both hands, frowning. "You've lost weight. How about I go start dinner. What about steak and potatoes?"

Fili's grin widened. "That's my favorite."

"I know," Bilbo winked before turning and heading towards the archway that led into the kitchen. "And you better eat everything I put on your plate, because Mahal knows you need it."

Shaking his head at Bilbo's retreating form, Fili let out a long sigh. He still felt a little bit sick, but he was also restless and needed to get out and do something. His first instinct was to go out in search of any form of alcohol or mild drugs, but obviously couldn't do that. He was just happy that he wasn't feeling the need to inject any heroin into his system. The last thing he needed was to become addicted to such a lethal drug, and not even by his own choice, considering he'd never wanted to do it in the first place.

After a few minutes of pondering his different options, Fili decided to go into work for a few hours. Even if he didn't have any clients scheduled, and doubtfully would end up getting any walk-ins, he'd still be out of the house and having a somewhat normal time. Plus, he missed Tauriel and Legolas a lot and hadn't seen much of them lately, and when he had, he'd just ended up arguing with them. Also, now that Tauriel had told Legolas pretty much everything about Fili's past addictions, the blonde was breathing down his neck even worse than the redhead. Fili understood their worry, but it could still be infuriating and definitely not helpful.

* * *

A quick trip to the bathroom later, and Fili was out the door. He decided to walk instead of taking the Jeep, since it was such a nice day outside. His hair was still slightly damp from the shower. He had so much of it that it usually took hours for the golden strands to completely dry, and even though it sometimes drove him crazy, he wasn't planning on chopping it off anytime soon.

By the time he arrived at the shop, sweat was steadily trickling down his neck and under the back of his shirt. Already Fili could tell that the up and coming summer was going to be a brutal one, and soon he would have no choice at all but to drive to work. The cool air inside the building was beyond welcoming. Almost as welcoming as Tauriel.

"Fili!" she squealed, bounding across the room, towards him.

Before he could even register what was happening, let alone cool down, he was nearly tackled by the excited redhead. She threw her arms around him, pulling him in for a tight hug, and he could've sworn it sounded as if she was nearly crying, due to her ragged breathing and the slight tremors he could feel were running through her body.

"You stupid boy!" she exclaimed, pulling back to look at him with wet eyes. "I was so worried about you! I tried to get you out of that stupid place, and you simply would not listen. Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!" She began pounding into his chest with her slender fists, frustration apparent all over her face.

Fili grabbed her hands to keep her from hitting him any more, and gave her the most apologetic look he could muster. "Tauriel, I know. I'm sorry. I've been a complete asshole, lately. There's no need to tell me, and I don't actually feel that great, so I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't beat the life out of me."

Despite Tauriel's slender figure, she was shockingly strong and was skillful at almost everything she tried, and Fili had to admit that some of the blows she'd landed to his chest hadn't felt too good. It didn't help that the heat had made him feel slightly nauseous again.

Tauriel didn't say anything but backed off a little bit, giving Fili some space.

"So, you seem to be doing better," Legolas observed, perched on his usual spot, atop the reception counter. "What happened at the party? Did Kili get you out before you could do anything really stupid?"

His words were harsh, but felt entirely friendly and sincere. Fili understood; he did incredibly stupid things when intoxicated. "Ah,well… let's just say it wasn't good at all and leave it at that. Kili did get me out of there, but I also did some stupid things… kind of." He paused to take a deep breath, feeling as though he was beginning to ramble. "It doesn't really matter," he continued. "Kili got me out of there, and he talked some sense into me. He's going to start helping me kick the addiction again."

"I knew he'd be able to talk some sense into you," Tauriel smiled, giving him one last squeeze before walking back to their work space. "You seem to care a lot about him."

Fili stared at her retreating form, a slight frown on his face. The tone she'd used hinted that she knew something about the two of them - a little bit more than Fili was comfortable with. His redheaded friend was too observant for her own good… and his. He didn't bother correcting her about Kili talking sense into him. After all, he'd been completely knocked out at the time when Kili had gotten him out of that awful situation, but she didn't need to know that.

Nobody did. It was to remain entirely between him and Kili.

* * *

_Kili_

"I can't believe how long it's been since we've seen each other. What's been going on?"  
Kili looked at his auburn-haired friend, placing his folded hands on the counter in front of him. "Not too much. I've just been trying to settle down into the house, and I've been working as many hours as Bilbo will give me."

After a quick conversation with Ori, the two had decided to meet up at the Bed and Breakfast. Ori sometimes hated being there, since he already had to live in the place, with both of his brothers, but it was a good place to hang out. It was large, so they usually had the quiet and privacy of an empty room, and it wasn't a public place. Kili really wasn't all that fond of large groups of people or busy, packed places.

They were sitting in the kitchen, which was currently void of all people, besides them. "How is everyone? I've only seen Bilbo one time since he gave me the job at the bookstore, but other than that I haven't heard anything about you or the other two."

"Do you even know Fili and Thorin?" the brunette questioned. He sank down on the stool slightly, his posture the absolute worst.

"I've met Thorin a couple times, but never Fili. I've heard a lot about him from Bilbo, though. He used to drop by here more often, back when we were in school, and he could've practically gone on for hours talking about his family. Last time we saw each other you told me that you and Fili get along great. Is that still working out for you?"

Kili hesitated slightly but ended up nodding his head. After all, he and Fili were still getting along quite well now, actually, but it didn't mean that they hadn't had a few ups and downs recently. "He's pretty easy going," Kili replied. "And really kind."

Ori had obviously noticed the hesitation and gave the brunette a knowing look. Even though Ori was a little bit socially inept - usually sticking to his books and writing, rather than going out and meeting new people - he still had a strange way of reading people almost perfectly, especially Kili. "What happened? I can tell just by the look on your face that something happened."

"Don't worry about it. It's really not that important. Fili has just been having a bit of a rough time lately, and it's been rather stressful."

"What's wrong with him?" Ori whispered, as if they were telling secrets.

"Nothing's wrong with him!" Kili laughed, almost too loudly. "Stop snooping."

Ori, reluctantly, allowed the conversation to drop, but Kili had a feeling it wouldn't be long before the smaller boy came sniffing for info again. He'd always been the kind to gossip, even about the most mundane things.

The two spent the majority of the day meandering about the Bed and Breakfast, catching up with each other and discussing other random topics. The conversation eventually led to Kili's 'date' with Tauriel, which brought the auburn boy to hysterics, and Kili hadn't been able to help but laugh with him. Bilbo and Thorin also came back into the conversation once or twice, but Kili could only describe so much about how it was living with them, considering he hadn't been under their roof for that long, and the entire time he'd been worrying about Fili.

Eventually they ended up outside. It was a clear, sunny day, and the lawn out back smelled freshly cut. Kili, although he was more of an autumn person, couldn't help but grin at the summer feel of it all.

"So what does Fili look like?" Ori questioned once they had sat down, idly picking at a strand of the bright-green grass.

Kili snorted. "Why do you keep asking about him? Haven't you heard enough from Bilbo to get a good idea?"

Shrugging, Ori gave him a wicked grin. "I just want to hear it from you. You know, everyones opinions and views are different. I'm sure you and Bilbo don't look at him the same way."

Although he should've been alarmed by Ori's expression, Kili gave in. "Fine. Uh, he has blonde hair - it's sort of golden, really - and he has a ginger-blonde beard. At first glance, especially if you see him at work, like I did, he seems somewhat intimidating and incredibly confident, which is sort of true, but he's also the most kind, gentle person I've met."

"Besides me," Ori interjected.

"No! He's not nearly as evil as you are!"

The smaller boy just rolled his eyes, so Kili continued on. "He's also a really fantastic artist, which sort of explains why he does tattoos, but you should see his paintings. They are incredible. And his eyes…" Kili paused for a moment. Thinking about the blonde's eyes nearly made him lose his breath, rendering him unable to speak. "They are so incredibly blue, like cerulean and aqua mixed together. And he has a set of extreme dimples that show up every time he smiles. To be honest, I'm shocked that he's still single."

Kili finished speaking, cut off by the look his friend was giving him. It was one of the most unnerving grins he'd ever seen.

"You like him," Ori eventually spoke.

Kili felt his eyes go wide with shock and embarrassment, and every drop of blood in his body went to his cheeks. Great. If that didn't give him away, surely nothing would. "No! God, Ori, he's like family."

"But he's not really, is he?" the snarky boy replied. How could Ori go from being the most shy, innocent being one second, to a full-on gossip reporter the next. "I mean, you two don't share any blood. Technically it's free game."

Kili tried to pull a face, but he simply couldn't think of Fili and look disgusted at the same time. "You're crazy, Ori. I do not like him."

"You do. I can tell by the way you talk about him."

"So it was all a set up?" Kili asked in disbelief. "You only got me to talk about him so that you could prove what you had already guessed."

"Perhaps," Ori grinned, ripping a piece of grass from the ground. "But now I know the truth."

Kili groaned and flopped onto his back to lay sprawled across the ground. "You'll be the death of me, I swear."

* * *

After many more discussions with Ori and a delicious lunch later, Kili arrived back home, feeling refreshed. It had felt really good to get out of the house and do something so normal, and it had been pretty refreshing to get some of his feelings off of his chest, as well. He entered the house, naturally glancing around for any sign of the golden blonde, but found Bilbo instead.

"Fili is out back," he spoke, without even asking Kili who he was looking for. "He's talking to Thorin. It could be a while."

The tone of Bilbo's voice gave everything away. "Did he tell you? About his relapse?"

Bilbo only nodded, a sad but unsurprised expression on his face. He looked _so _tired.

"Right then," Kili swallowed heavily, worried about Fili, and gave Bilbo a small nod back. "I suppose I'll just wait up in his room."

Without sparing another minute, unable to handle any more of the sadness in Bilbo's hazel eyes, Kili spun on his heel and went for the staircase before racing up to Fili's bedroom. Despite the bad condition the blonde had been in recently, his bedroom looked just as tidy as ever. Of course, it could've been because he hadn't actually been spending that much time at him, opting for the parties and alcohol, but it was still an accomplishment. Kili couldn't keep his room clean, even when he was sober.

Much to Kili's surprise, the drawing of him was still on Fili's desk. It even looked as if he had worked on it a little bit. Some details had been fleshed out, bringing a brilliant depth to the drawing, and Kili couldn't help but think that he looked a lot better in the drawing than he did in real life. Was that really the way Fili saw him? He hoped so.

His drawn-self had hair that looked perfectly messy in it's bun, and the smile on his face held so much emotion that the brunette was shocked that Fili had been able to draw it to such an intensity. There were even specks of what looked like coffee stains on his apron, which were definitely on the real thing; Kili could be a real mess at work, and it was not so rare that Kili spilled things on himself.

After a few more moments of smiling at the drawing, Kili decided to lie down on Fili's bed, feeling rather sleepy. Even though he and Ori hadn't done much, the day had left him feeling exhausted. Perhaps it had been due to all that had happened the previous night.

The bed really was quite soft, and the blinds that Fili always had shut were keeping the majority of the afternoon sun out. The bedding smelled like Fili - a mixture of some sort of spice and a deep musk. Kili smiled to himself, and it wasn't long before his eyes slid shut and he fell into a light sleep.

* * *

**What did you guys think? Let me know if you guys liked it, and I'm definitely open to any criticism or suggestions! Thank you all so much for reading.**


	15. Unexpected

**This one isn't very long or eventful, but I figured I owed you all another chapter after yesterday's! Things are calming down now for a while, but don't you worry, the angst will return! :D**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 15

Unexpected

_Fili_

The work day, as expected, hadn't included any clients. Once Tauriel started working on people, Fili had become bored. He seized the opportunity though, and soon began working on doing some deep cleaning around the place and even took inventory and made a few phone calls. It was usually Legolas' job to take care of the more mundane things, but Fili helped him out, and it felt really good to do something productive for the first time in days.

Of course, fifty percent of the time had been spent thinking about Kili, ten percent about the chat he was going to have with Thorin, and the other forty was spent daydreaming of alcohol. Fili wanted a drink so badly that it was putting him in a somewhat foul mood, but when he'd think of Kili he was able to pull through. The brunette had faith in him, and Fili didn't want to let him down.

After arriving home from work, Fili found himself standing in the kitchen with Bilbo, as per usual. It felt to him like they spent more time in there than in their sitting room, but it sort of made sense. Everyone in that family definitely loved food.

"Your father is home," Bilbo spoke, looking up at Fili from the onion he was cutting. He appeared to be making some sort of sauce, and the blonde had a feeling it was going to be a marinara for the steaks. He nearly cheered in delight. "He's just freshening up, and then he'll be right down. Are you going to talk to him?"

"I don't have a choice, do I?" Fili sighed, walking towards the sliding glass door that led out back. "Let him know I'm waiting for him out on the porch swing.

It was almost 5:00, and Fili couldn't help but notice how gorgeous the backyard looked this time of day. The last couple hours before sunset always cast long shadows across the grass, and gave the yard a sort of glow that it never had during the earlier hours of the day. Because of this, the porch swing was his favorite place to sit in the whole house, whether it be to think, talk, or just let his mind go blissfully numb. Like usual, he took his shoes and socks off and stuck his toes in the grass, smiling at the soft, calming texture.

"You wanted to talk, son?"

Fili turned to see Thorin walking outside, closing the door behind him. He looked tired, as if he'd had a very long day at work, and he had changed into some lounge pants and a tee shirt.

Nodding, Fili scooted over to make room for the older man, the chair swinging to and fro as they settled down. He could hardly look at Thorin, his nerves suddenly taking him by surprise, closing off all use of his mouth and throat. He couldn't even swallow around his fear of the way the elder would react. Sure, Bilbo had taken it fairly well, but he was a bit more grounded of a person. Despite Thorin's strong and powerful, masculine nature, he was the more emotionally unbalanced of the two.

"I-I.. I wanted to apologize. For my recent behavior," he eventually stuttered out after taking a deep breath. "I know I've been scarce lately, and when I have been around, I've been none too pleasant. So I'm sorry."

Thorin seemed to consider Fili's words for a moment, and then leaned back on the swing, giving the youth a questioning look. "It's alright, Fili. I only wish to know what had you acting that way. It seemed like there was something wrong, and we all wanted to help you, but you were like a wild animal - you wouldn't allow any of us to come near you."

A million excuses came to Fili's mind, but he didn't dare test them. Bilbo already knew, after all. There was no way he could lie now, so he opted for the direct approach. Quick and painless, like a band-aide. He pretended to be interested in a lady bug that was crawling in the grass, to buy himself some time, but knew it couldn't last long.

Eventually he mumbled, "I relapsed."

It was like Bilbo all over again, only a thousand times worse. Both of them held their breath for a long time, and it was over half a minute before the blonde built up the courage to look at the man who had raised him. And when he did, he regretted it.

Thorin was as white as a sheet of paper, mouth hanging open slightly, and his hands were clenched into fists where they rested on his thighs. Fili honestly couldn't tell if he was sad, shocked or angry, but thought that perhaps it was a mixture of all three, although, one thing was completely obvious: unlike Bilbo, Thorin hadn't even suspected that a relapse had been the cause of Fili's recent behavior.

Fili was on the verge of going back inside, uncomfortable in the midst of such a heavy silence, when Thorin finally spoke. "Why?"

A shake of his head was all Fili could give in response.

"Son, tell me why."

"I really can't, Thorin," he whispered, burying his face in his hands.

"And why is that?"

"It's personal," came Fili's muffled reply. "It's not something I want to discuss, and it was really, really stupid, but I promise I'm going to get better now. It's not nearly as bad as before, and I have even more support than I did the last time, since Legolas knows and Kili said he'll help. I'm going to be alright."

There was another short silence, and then Fili was pulled into the arms of his father. His dam of emotions broke for the second time that day, sending a wash of tears down his face. Fili didn't usually spend a lot of time crying, but he was coming to terms with it, understanding that it made him feel better to do so, rather than bottling up all of his feelings and inevitably choking on them. That only resulted in pain on everyone's part.

"I trust that you will," Thorin spoke, running a large, comforting hand over Fili's long hair. "You will fight this demon, Fili, and you will win. You, me and all the other people in your life will see to that."

Pulling back, Fili nodded, giving Thorin a watery smile. The older man still looked very upset, and Fili could tell he was holding back, but he was just grateful for the self-control Thorin was showing. The first time he'd found out about Fili's alcohol addiction hadn't gone quite as well.

"Thank you for understanding, father," he mumbled, leaning in to give Thorin another quick hug."

"I'm glad you had the courage to tell me," the elder smiled. "Now, go and wash up for dinner. It'll only be a couple of hours until it's ready."

"That's a long time to wash up."

"Sure, but you smell like a wet goat."

"I **do not!**" Fili exclaimed, trying not to laugh. He was so relieved by the lightening of the discussion that he couldn't possibly hold back his happiness. "I smell perfectly normal!"

"As normal as any other farm animal," Thorin snorted, giving the blonde a playful nudge.

Fili laughed and held his hands up in surrender, standing up. "Fine. I'll go."

He dashed back inside and up the stairs, laughing to himself as he went. Even though Thorin had been teasing him, Fili really had been pretty grimy when he'd gotten home, after all of the sweating he'd done that day.

He stopped by the bathroom to hop in the shower and rinse off, and then wrapped the towel around his waist, pulled his hair back in a low bun, and padded down to his bedroom, leaving a small, wet trail behind him. When he pushed the door open, he was pleasantly surprised to find a sleeping Kili in his bed.

Fili studied the brunette's unmoving figure as he pulled on some underwear and sweatpants and discarded the towel into his dirty laundry basket. He wasn't sure he'd ever get used to the sight of the younger boy sleeping in his bed - molasses hair spilling wildly across the pillows, a slight flush to his tanned skin, and his mouth hanging slightly open.

Knowing there was still at least and hour and a half until dinner would be done, Fili couldn't resist crawling into bed with the brunette. All the walking he had done, alongside his confessions and the hangover that was still clutching to his head, had left him feeling exhausted. He pulled back the blanket and curled up next to Kili before pulling the bedding back up and over the both of them.

All the movement caused Kili to wake up, blinking tiredly. "Fee?"

"Hey," he whispered, pulling the brunette closer, in order to steal some of his body heat. Kili allowed it to happen and came to rest his head on the blonde's chest.

"How was your talk with Thorin?" Kili asked, letting his eyes fall shut again.

"Okay," Fili sighed, wrapping his arm around Kili. "He didn't react well, but he didn't react as badly as I thought he might. Everyone has been incredibly supportive today."

"That's because we all love you," Kili mumbled, "and we all want to see you get better."

Those simple words brought the biggest smile to Fili's face, and he gave Kili a squeeze before letting his eyes also fall shut.

* * *

_Bilbo_

Bilbo hummed under his breath as he plopped four steaks into freezer bags and put them in the fridge to marinate. He, of course, hadn't been able to stop thinking about his eldest boy all day, but cooking helped distract him, which was more than welcome.

Thorin was still sitting outside, and it had been over half an hour since he and Fili had finished talking. Bilbo was slightly worried about his husband, knowing how upset he'd been the last time Fili had gone through this, but also was aware that the man needed some time alone, and he respected that. He would come inside when he felt ready.

It was another hour before Thorin made his way in. The sun was beginning to set, and Bilbo had just finished all the prep for dinner and had started cooking the corn and potatoes.

"Our boy," was all Thorin said.

"I know," Bilbo replied.

Thorin sighed and slid onto a stool, propped his elbows on the counter, and rested his chin on one palm, a tired look on his face. It made him look ten years older than he was. "I just wish there was something I could do to help him."

Bilbo turned around to face Thorin, only the space of the counter separating them. "You can give him your love and support, which I believe is very helpful. Yes, inevitably he will have to quit on his own, but it would be a lot harder without anyone to back him up or catch him when he slips."

"I guess you're right."

Bilbo chuckled. "Of course I am! Now, how about you go fire up the grill and cook these steaks," he said, gesturing towards a platter that held the bagged-meat.

"You're the chef."

"Don't play dumb with me, Thorin." Bilbo rolled his eyes, pushing the steak towards the disgruntled man. "I know you haven't a clue how to work the oven, but you've never had problems with the grill."

Thorin didn't bother responding and instead shook his head, laughing quietly at his partner's fiery attitude, and went back outside with the steaks in hand.

* * *

It didn't take Thorin long to cook the meat, and Bilbo was just taking the vegetables off of the stove when he traipsed back inside.

"Here," the shorter man said, setting an empty bowl in front of Thorin, on the counter. "I've already set the table, so mash the potatoes in here, and keep an eye on the gravy. If it starts to bubble, turn off the stove. I'm going to go get the boys."

"Yes, Master," Thorin groaned, moving to do as he was told.

Bilbo shook his head and left the kitchen, soon making his way up the stairs. He hadn't heard a peep from either of the boys since Fili had gone upstairs, and he was a little bit curious to see what was keeping them so entertained. Ordinarily he couldn't go for longer than twenty minutes without being bugged by at least one, if not both, of them.

Since Kili's room was the first one, he tried that door before Fili's. It was hanging wide open, so he marched inside, only to find it completely empty. He should've known.

Grumbling nonsense under his breath, the small man walked diagonally across the hall. Feeling there was no reason for him to knock, he opened the door and stepped inside the homey room. What he found was unexpected.

Fili and Kili were tangled together under a mound of blankets, clearly sleeping. Normally it wouldn't have seemed unusual, like they were just taking a nap, but the position they were in said something different; They were wrapped together like lovers, Kili's head resting on Fili's bare chest. Even through his shock, Bilbo felt bad for having to wake them. They looked so peaceful, especially Fili, who had a relaxed smile lingering on his lips.

Bilbo cleared his throat and knocked loudly on the door, waking the boys. He then squeaked, "Dinner's ready," in a very shrill voice, before turning on his heel and hurrying quickly back down the stairs.

"Thorin! Thorin!" he exclaimed, bolting into the kitchen.

"What?" Thorin looked up from the bowl of potatoes, concern glinting in his eyes.

"Fili….F-Fili and Kili - the boys," he panted.

"Yes. Go on…"

"I think they're… together," Bilbo spoke with wide eyes.

"What do you mean?" Thorin asked, setting the potato masher down to give Bilbo his full attention.

"I mean they're sleeping together!"

"_**WHAT**__?__"_

_ "_Not like _that. _I mean, literally, they were sleeping in the same bed when I went up there."

Thorin broke into a relieved grin. "You worry too much. There's nothing wrong with them sharing a bed."

"But they were so close! Kili was practically on top of Fili."

"It happens."

"Fili had no shirt on!"

"He's a young man. They never wear proper clothing."

"Thorin!"

"Bilbo!"

"It's not normal."

"Sure it is."

"Maybe for children. They are grown men."

Thorin's response faltered on his lips, because the two boys in question made their entrance at that point. They both looked completely normal, if not a bit groggy, and Fili had even put on a tank top.

Thorin shot his husband a smug look.

"Uhm.." Bilbo cleared his throat awkwardly. "You two go settle in. We will bring the food out."

They grumbled their consent and headed towards the dining room. Meanwhile, Bilbo turned and gave Thorin one last, serious look. "You'll see, Thorin Oakenshield. Just you wait!"

* * *

**Comments, Suggestions?! They make me happy! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, and I'd love to know what you all think. Thank you so much for reading!**


	16. Listen

**Here's another quick chapter! Still not a whole lot happening, but they boys are getting some much needed words from a certain redhead. I hope you enjoy!**

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Chapter 16

Listen

_Kili_

"What the-?"

Kili turned to see what was making such a horrible, sputtering, shrieking sound. It turned out to be the espresso machine, which was steaming wildly and spraying a good amount of water and espresso all over the counter and floor.

"Shit!"

"Wha's the matter, lad?" Bofur questioned, walking out of the back room and wiping his hands on a towel. "Oh!"

"I don't know what happened," Kili sighed, mopping at the mess on the counter with a rag. Considering that the machine didn't look like it was going to stop anytime soon, it wasn't doing much good.

"Here," Bofur laughed, setting his hand towel down. He approached the machine carefully, as if it were a wild animal, and then smacked the top of it with his fist quite powerfully.

Kili flinched back, giving Bofur wide eyes, but after a few moments realized that the espresso machine had stopped going crazy, and he ended up giving the older man a relieved smile. "Thanks, Bofur."

"It's nothin,'" he grinned, giving Kili his usual, friendly grin. His hair was in two braids, and since their shift had started it had become a little bit wild, strands of hair falling out and sticking out at strange angles. It only made him seem more amiable than ever. "This thing is a piece of junk. We've been needin' a new one for a while."

Kili washed his hands in the small sink they had up front and replied, "I'll let Bilbo know tonight. I'm sure he'd be more than happy to order one. But you know this means we won't be able to serve espresso for the rest of the day. If people want something strong they'll just have to deal with French Press."

Bofur shrugged. "To be honest, lad, I don't think most of our customers would notice the difference."

"I think you're right," Kili began, nodding his agreement, and was about to continue, but was interrupted by an all-too-familiar voice.

"Kili!"

"Tauriel!" Kili called back, without even turning to see who it was. She visited him often while he was working. A moment later he finished washing his hands and dried them on his apron, finally turning to greet the redhead. "Fair warning: our espresso machine is down."

A swift pout crossed her face, and she stuck her bottom lip out. "But I was supposed to get Leggy his White Girl drink."

"I'll make it with the French Press. Just for you," Kili grinned, before proceeding to pull the french press out from a cabinet. He didn't actually mind doing it but like to give his friend a hard time.

"Speaking of Legolas," he continued, "have you tapped that yet?"

"Ugh!" She burst into a fit of giggles, her shoulders shaking as she leaned against the counter. "No! Why do you have to put it that way? It's so crude."

Shrugging, the brunette gave her a sly look. "You two have been dancing around each other for way too long. Make your move, girl!"

"Why doesn't he?"

"Because he's under the impression that you think he's gay. Why would he?"

"He has a point, lass," Bofur added, giving her a warm look. "The boy is too insecure."

"Even you have noticed?" she questioned, clearly unaware that so many people knew about the two of them. "Are we really that obvious?"

"Yes," the men both replied in unison.

Tauriel looked at Kili for a moment while he finished making the drink. Using the French Press took quite a bit longer than pulling regular shots, but luckily, Tauriel was currently their only customer, so he wasn't in much of a hurry. After drizzling some vanilla syrup on top of the whipped cream, Kili popped a lid on the warm drink and passed it to Tauriel, just noticing judgmental look she was giving him.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing," she smiled sweetly. He didn't buy it for one moment.

"Tauriel, you've clearly got something to tell me."

She flipped her long, red locks over a shoulder and leaned closer to him. "Well, I have a suggestion to make, Mr. 'Relationship Counselor.'"

"I'll be in the back room. I should probably get a mop for this mess," Bofur said before pushing back through the swinging door, though Kili barely noticed. It was obvious that the older man had simply wanted to escape witnessing Kili get chewed out by the redhead, for which Kili was actually grateful. Anyone else (Ori definitely came to mind) would have loved to stay and watch.

"Oh?" Kili challenged, smirking. "And what might that be?"

"I suggest you take a dose of your own medicine, doctor. Because I know a certain blonde, whose losing his mind, and I'm fully aware that it's entirely your fault."

Kili eyes grew wider than they had in his entire life. There was no way that Tauriel could know; he hadn't confessed to anyone except for Ori, and surely Fili hadn't told her. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Like I would ever believe that. You should see your face."

Kili flushed and turned away from her, picking up his dripping rag to resume pushing the mess of water and coffee around on the counter. And, of course, it still wasn't doing any good.

"Kili, just listen to me."

He turned back around, an angry blush skimming his cheeks. He didn't say anything, but gave her his full attention.

"He didn't tell me," she spoke, leaning even further forward on the counter. She looked dead serious now, a small line creasing her forehead in concern. "I figured it out on my own. You think people don't notice the way you look at each other? Don't be so upset. There's nothing wrong with it."

"He's my family."

"You two don't share any blood. It's perfectly fine. And it's not as if you grew up together; you just met a couple of months ago!"

Kili sighed heavily and untied his apron before pulling it over his head and setting it and the rag on the counter. He felt suddenly exhausted and just wanted to go home. "So what's this suggestion of yours?"

"It's exactly what you've been telling me this whole time. You need to make a move. The boy is miserable - I see it everyday. He avoids talking about you, and he won't let me help him do anything. He just sulks around the shop, only speaking to his clients, and it doesn't help that he's going through withdrawal right now. He needs you more than ever."

The words hit Kili like a staggering realization. It had been a couple of weeks since Fili had quit drinking and the two had shared their first, real kiss. Since then they hadn't really done much. Things had gone back to the way they'd been before, and after about a week and a half it had even gotten to the point where they barely even spoke. There was a tense feeling hovering between them, and Kili had no idea how to get rid of it. He missed late nights with the blonde, watching him paint or draw, and most importantly, just talking to him. Since they'd met they had become close friends, maybe even more, and Kili hadn't realized how depressed he'd been feeling until now.

"I don't know what to do," he whispered. "I mean… I already did make my move, kind of."

"Kind of?"

"Well… we may have kissed."

Tauriel gave him a little smile and took a sip of the drink she was holding, instantly shuddering at the sweet taste, as if she had forgotten it was Legolas.' "Then I don't understand what the issue is."

Kili shook his head, pinching the bridge of his nose. He loved Tauriel to pieces, but she was honestly giving him a headache sent straight from Hell. "I don't know, either. One minute everything was great, and we were talking things out and moving forward in our relationship, and the next minute we stopped talking to each other completely."

"As confident as he seems, Fili struggles with social interaction. You have to go to him, and let him know that you still want a relationship with him. I think he's just insecure and trying to give you space. He's the type of person that doesn't like forcing himself upon people."

"He's not, though," Kili replied, looking back up at her. Sure, he could tell that Fili was a little bit insecure, but he definitely didn't think it went that far. Hadn't he made it clear that he shared the blonde's feelings?

"But he doesn't know that." She gave him a pointed look, one perfectly-shaped eyebrow arching high on her forehead. "You need to talk to him."

"I'll speak to him if you make a move on Legolas," he challenged.

"No," she shook her head, smiling knowingly. "You'll speak to him no matter what, because you care about him, but I'll still do as you ask and speak to Legolas."

"It's a deal, then," Kili grinned back, suddenly feeling more optimistic about the day. There was still time to fix things.

Tauriel held out her hand, and he grasped it in a firm shake. "Deal. Now, I have a couple more drinks for you to whip up."

* * *

_Fili_

"Fili, would you calm the fuck down?"

Fili turned to glare at Legolas, who was giving him a look that made it clear that he thought he had gone crazy. He didn't exactly blame him; after all, he'd spent the majority of the work day in a sulk. Half the time he was to be found dragging his feet, pouting over the most minor of things, almost to the point of crying. The other half of the time was spent in a rage, stomping about and saying mean, unnecessary things to anyone who crossed his path.

At the moment he wanted to hit something.

"Calm the fuck down?" he all but yelled, his hands shaking with pent up anger. "You want me to calm down? You calm the fuck down!"

"Seriously, Fili, come on," Tauriel interjected. She was sitting in the waiting area, at the front of the shop, with both of the boys, since nobody currently had a client. "You should sit down. Look at you! You're too angry to even come up with a good comeback!"

He nearly screamed, but instead bottled it up inside, causing his whole body to shake even worse. He clutched onto the reception desk, trying to steady himself. "Fuck! I just need a drink. I've never needed one so bad."

Tauriel actually had the nerve to roll her eyes, and Fili couldn't help but momentarily wonder if she was trying to help him or set him off. "Yes you have. You're just being dramatic. It's the withdrawal speaking."

"I hate you both."

"No you don't," they replied in unison, sharing a surprised smile.

The two of them made Fili want to pitch himself off of a cliff. How could they look so happy - so smitten - while he was spending all of his time alone, trying to fight against his addiction. Everyone had claimed that they wanted to help him, but where were they now, while his blood was thrumming with want and his head was spinning out of control. Where were they when he needed them most? A small voice in Fili's head told him that he was being stupid and selfish for even thinking such things, but he chose to shove it to the back of his mind and ignore it.

"Where has Kili been?" Tauriel questioned randomly. "I thought he was supposed to be helping you through all of this."

"He was," Fili replied, the words bitter against his tongue. "But I guess he decided that I'm a lost cause."

"Don't be stupid." Tauriel actually looked angry at him for a moment, as if she were offended that he would speak about either Kili or himself that way. Then she abruptly stood and said, "Come with me."

The blonde followed his redheaded friend to the back of the shop, where they normally worked on clients, and once they entered the small room she shut the door behind them and turned to give him a stern look. Fili couldn't actually remember ever seeing her look so serious before.

"Now, you listen here," she began, stepping so close to him that they nearly stood chest-to-chest. "You're attitude is going to get you nowhere. You know that Kili hasn't given up on you - none of us have - so what is your problem?"

He avoided making eye contact with her by staring at a piece of thread that was hanging down from one of the sleeves of Tauriel's green, cotton dress, and slowly took a deep breath before speaking. "It's the withdrawals."

"I know that. But that's not all it is. This has to do with Kili."

Fili just shook his head.

"I'm not stupid, you know. I see the way you two look at each other. When you're together, neither of you ever let the other out of sight, and I see how sad you look whenever you think he's not watching. I don't know if you two have talked about your relationship at all, but you need to work it out."

At that, Fili lifted his eyes to Tauriel's green orbs. They seemed to be staring right through him, as if she could read all of his secrets just by looking at him. "What are you talking about?"

"It's obvious you two like each other."

"That's absolutely ludicrous," he laughed, shaking his head nervously. How could she possibly know?

"Oh, shut up," she scoffed, grabbing him by the arm and leading him to sit down on one of the tattoo beds with her. "You two are so in love that it's nearly repulsive."

"No."

"Yes, you are, and you need to sort yourselves out."

"Tauriel, I really haven't got any idea what you are talking about. He's like a brother."

She snorted, which was probably one of the most unladylike things he'd ever witnessed her do. "Bullshit. Fili, please just tell me what's wrong."

For a few moments Fili simply looked at her, trying to decide whether she was setting a trap for him or not. Eventually his defensive wall came crumbling down, and he shook his head at her with sad eyes. "He doesn't want me."

"Fili, I can assure you he does," she spoke quietly, giving his arm an affectionate rub.

"I kissed him, you know," he blurted, almost regretting it. It was already out in the open now, though, so he continued. "That's what started this whole mess. I kissed him, and he didn't respond, so I panicked and fled to Legolas' place."

"And then you drank to get rid of the pain."

He nodded and ran a shaky hand through his hair, which was fairly messy and more than a little bit tangled. Since the withdrawal symptoms had taken hold of him, he hadn't found it in himself to do much other than get dressed in the mornings. "And then a couple of weeks ago he returned the favor," he continued, a light shade of pink crossing his face as he said it. The memory of it still made his entire body grow warm.

"And?"

"And it was great. And then nothing. We took a nap together the next day, and that was the end. We've hardly spoken since then."

Tauriel laughed, and gave Fili's arm a squeeze where she was still grasping onto it. "That's not such a big deal! You two are just in an awkward rut. All you need to do is talk to him about it. Tell him how you feel, and everything will end up being fine."

"I don't know, Tauriel. I feel like he might've changed his mind. He might not actually want me."

"Everyone wants you, Fili." She gave him a playful wink. "Including that gorgeous brunette. Stop letting your own insecurities get in the way, and dive right in, and take what you want."

"I want him."

"I know."

He finally cracked a grin at her. "I'll try. But my social skills aren't the best."

She stood back up, smoothing the wrinkles out of her dress, and gave him a kind face, her eyes twinkling in a way that reminded him of starlight. "They could be, if only you let them. Besides, he won't care if you stumble over a word or two."

"Thank you." Fili felt his rapid pulse slowing back to it's normal rate, and his desire for a drink ebbed away, if only slightly.

"Anytime, tiger. Now, I still have a while yet before my next client is due, so how about I go and pick us up some coffee?"

If Fili noticed the mischievous glint in her eyes, he didn't say anything.

* * *

**Hmmmm... We will see how things play out.**

**I hope you all liked it! :D Suggestions and comments are most appreciated. Even if it's just some ramblings and you don't have anything really constructive to say - that's totally fine! All I ask is for no hate. ;)**

**Thank you all for reading. Until next time...**


	17. Headlights

**So I'm not completely sure that I'm wholly satisfied with this chapter, but I hope you guys like it. I re-read it so many times, and somehow couldn't make it exactly how I wanted it, but I think it's decent.**

**On the bright side, things are getting interesting again! Maybe our boys will find a little bit of happiness in each other for a while. They both deserve it.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 17

Headlights

_Fili_

When Fili had left work, he'd been feeling really great. Tonight he was going to fix everything between him and Kili, and in his excitement he had all but ran out to the Jeep the moment he got off, nearly running into the vehicle as he skid to a stop to hurriedly open the door.

Having checked the weather report before going to work, he'd known that it was due to rain, so he had driven to work, and the rain definitely hadn't disappointed. It was already pouring down in great, heavy drops, and there was no sign of sunshine in sight. Fili hopped into the car, already soaking wet from standing outside, fumbling with the keys, and turned on the heat and windshield wipers the moment he started the car.

As he drove, Fili could see black clouds moving in from a short distance and knew that a massive thunderstorm was about to hit, but he wasn't complaining. He loved thunderstorms, and the pattering of rain on his windows helped calm his nerves for what he was about to do. If all went well and the night ended with a storm and Kili's warm arms, he was going to be a very happy man.

When he was about three minutes from home, Fili's headlights caught a lonesome figure walking along the side of the road, and it only took the blonde about five seconds to figure out who it was. He tried not to roll his eyes as he pulled over to the side of the road.

"You've got to start checking the weather," he called, rolling down his window. "You shouldn't be walking in this storm."

The figure gave a startled jump at his voice and turned, giving Fili round eyes. The brunette wasted almost no time before he trotted over to the Jeep and jumped in the passenger seat, pushing his wet bangs out of his face.

"Thanks," he breathed, teeth chattering a bit. "I had no idea it was going to rain."

"It's like I said," Fili replied, pulling back onto the road. "You've got to start checking."

Kili didn't reply and the two drove on for a short while in silence. It started off being a relaxed quiet, but soon became awkward, just as things had been for the last couple of weeks. There wasn't even any music playing, so the only sound was the rain slamming on the top of the car and the squeaking of the windshield wipers.

Fili took a deep breath. "Kili."

"Fili?"

"Uhhh."

"Just spit it out."

"We need to talk." Fili let out his breath.

Kili pulled his lips into a thin line, and gave Fili a serious look. "I'm aware."

The blonde cleared his throat, coughing for a moment, before responding. "Why don't we just wait until we get home." As if that didn't make things more awkward. Why had he even said anything at all?

The silence returned, but it was only for a couple of moments before they pulled onto the long drive that led up to the house. The gravel was crunching where the tires rolled over it, the sound barely breaking through the loud thundering of the storm overhead.

They eventually ended up in Fili's room, after saying a quick 'hello' to Bilbo and Thorin, who were conversing over cups of tea in the sitting room. The atmosphere was growing tense quickly, and Fili was almost finding it hard to breathe.

"Okay," Fili sighed, kicking off his shoes. He slipped a hair tie off of his wrist and pulled his hair back in a quick ponytail to get it out of his face. The last thing he needed was a distraction. "I don't know where to begin."

Kili took a moment before saying anything, and Fili directed his attention to the window for the time being. He could barely see through the semi-open blinds, and the rain, if at all possible, seemed to be coming down even stronger than before, and the thunderstorm had finally hit them with full force. Lightning was forking in great flashes, far too close for comfort.

"Why don't you begin by just telling me exactly how you're feeling?"

The blonde whipped his head back to look at the brunette and folded his arms across his chest in discomfort. Kili openly stared at him and sat on the bed, awaiting an answer. Fili felt as if they had been in this situation far too many times for how long they'd known each other, and hoped to put an end to it now.

"I feel like you don't want to be around me anymore, let alone be _with _me. I've been going through horrible withdrawal symptoms, which have made me a touch more than moody, and every time they hit I just want to be with you. You have this calming presence, and I need that, but I don't know if that's what you want… to be around me and help me, that is." He gushed all the words out in one, quick breath, closing his eyes when he was finished so that he wouldn't have to see the look on Kili's face. He was expecting rejection, and was in no way prepared for such a thing.

"Fili… how could you… I mean, why would you think such a thing?"

He kept his eyes closed and replied, "You've been avoiding me, so I just assumed that was how you felt."

There was a long moment where he couldn't hear anything except the rumble of thunder overhead. Even though it was still the afternoon, not even dinner time, it felt late, due to the dark sky, and to be completely honest, Fili was drained and ready for bed.

"I don't feel that way at all."

Fili opened his eyes. "You don't?"

"No, silly," Kili grinned shyly at him, and Fili wished he could pause the moment and paint that beautiful face. "I haven't been trying to avoid you at all. The thing is… I haven't really been in many relationships - just a few short ones that didn't end up amounting to anything - so I don't know how to act with you. After everyone calmed down and you stopped drinking, I wasn't completely sure how to act around you. I'm sorry it came off like I was trying to avoid you."

Fili walked to the window and peered outside, through the blinds, trying to hide the sudden relief on his face and watched the thrashing trees in the backyard. He momentarily worried about Bilbo's garden. "It's fine."

"No," he heard Kili stand up from the bed and walk towards him, "It's not fine. I really should apologize. I know you're insecure and unsure about your feelings, and me acting like such a prick wasn't helping."

"You didn't act like a prick."

"Sure I did. I was completely aware of your feelings, and you made it obvious that you needed my reassurance after the whole alcohol incident, and yet I still acted so foolishly."

Fili felt the younger boy come to a stop right behind him, the warmth of his body radiating far enough to reach his own. He suddenly realized that they were both in wet clothes, Kili's perhaps a little bit worse. "We should probably change," he spoke.

"Can we try again?" Kili asked, apparently ignoring Fili's observation about their clothing.

The blonde swallowed around the lump in his throat, wanting to cry out of pure joy. Kili still wanted to be with him. He really, truly did, and for that he was more grateful than he'd ever been in his entire life.

He nodded and breathed a shaky, "Yes."

Suddenly he was encompassed in Kili's long arms, something he thought he'd never feel again, and he let out a long breath, followed by a short laugh, which was a result of ten thousand pounds of weight being lifted from his chest. Everything had gone so much better than he ever could have hoped for.

"I promised I'd court you," Kili spoke, amusement in his voice as he rested his chin on Fili's shoulder. The warm breath on his ear made him shiver. "So now we have to go on a proper date. How about tomorrow?"

"What do you want to do?" Fili whispered, still unable to believe his luck.

"Mmm, let's go to the beach if the weather clears up."

Fili just nodded in response, so Kili continued. "And about what you said before, I totally agree. We do need to get you out of these clothes."

"Hey!" he exclaimed, turning in the brunette's arms to look him in the face, a flush creeping up his neck. "I never said we should take our clothes off. I said we should _change _them."

"Same thing," Kili shrugged, peeling his arms from around the blondes body, so that he could use his hands to inch Fili's shirt up slightly, revealing a strip of lightly-tanned flesh, accompanied by a thin strip of golden hair. The brunette licked his lips, and Fili tried to fend off the sudden tug of arousal that he began to feel.

"Kili…"

"Shhhh," Kili grinned down at the blonde, being a few inches taller than him, and suddenly Fili felt a rush of warmth towards the other boy. He felt safe with Kili and somehow knew, this time, that what he had said was the truth. Kili really did want him.

Without any sort of warning, Kili suddenly stepped back from him and tugged off his own shirt, tossing it to the ground somewhere, before proceeding to tug Fili's all the way off and throw it just as unceremoniously as he had his own. Fili felt quite naked, even though he'd been shirtless in front of other's a countless number of times, but couldn't bring himself to care whilst he was faced with Kili's long, lithe torso. The skin was paler than that of his arms and face - having not seen much sunlight - but it was still a shade darker than his own, and he sported a lot more fur than the blonde. There was a dark spattering of hair on his chest, which narrowed down into a thin line that led to his belly, where it pooled out again and disappeared beneath the top of his pants.

Fili felt his own pants grow quite a bit tighter.

"Those wet clothes were driving me mad," Kili grinned cheekily, and moved back towards Fili, wrapping his arms around him once more. This time Fili could feel the warmth of his skin and tickle of his hair, instead of the chilled damp of his shirt. All of the air was sucked from his lungs.

"Fee," Kili cooed, leaning down close to the blonde's face, so that their heavy breaths mingled. "Tell me what you want."

"You," he choked out. "I want you."

The brunette wasted no time in claiming his lips with his own, but unlike their last kiss, this one was rushed and heated, full of a lust that hadn't been there before. Fili couldn't remember ever being kissed with so much passion and gripped onto Kili's waist, trying to stabilize himself and remind himself that this actually wasn't a dream.

Kili snatched Fili's bottom lip between his teeth, tugging lightly, and a small moan escaped the shorter man, only adding to the heat between them. The thunder continued to roll overhead, and Fili couldn't think of a better situation. His favorite weather, his favorite boy, and a hot make out session. It was really turning out to be a perfect night, just as he had hoped.

"Kili, I want.."

"What do you want?" he murmured, slipping his hands downward to toy with the button of Fili's pants.

Fili could only groan, shutting his eyes tightly. He didn't know what he wanted.

"Fee, tell me what you want."

He opened his mouth to respond, figuring he'd let his mind go blank and let his raw feelings do the talking for him, but he didn't get the chance before door was flung open and a surprised shout caused the two boys to spring apart from each other, breathing heavily.

* * *

_Thorin_

Thorin scratched idly at his beard and stared at the crackling fire, trying to decide whether or not he wanted to bring the boys with them to dinner. He was enjoying his quiet afternoon in with Bilbo, and they had decided it would be nice to go get dinner, instead of cooking anything, and Thorin didn't really want the boys to ruin the peace.

Bilbo spoke before he could voice his thoughts. "Go get the boys, and we'll head out."

"Do you really want to bring them?" Thorin sighed, dropping his hand back down to his lap. "It's been so quiet without them."

"Thorin," Bilbo rolled his eyes, and gave him a look that said 'really?' "We can't let them starve. Both of them have been hard at work all day, and Fili is doing really well with kicking his alcohol addiction again. We have every reason to celebrate together - _as a family.__"_

"Lord, don't get your panties in a wad. I'll go get them."

Thorin stood from his chair and sat his empty tea cup on the coffee table before meandering over to their staircase. He was still hesitant to go pull the beasts from whatever activity was keeping them engaged.

When he approached Fili's room he found the door slightly opened, and took it as a sign that it was safe to enter. Oh, how wrong he was.

He flung the door open and was met with a scene he never thought he'd walk in on. Both boys were shirtless, and so tied up in each other that he was shocked they'd even noticed his entrance. But they in fact had, probably because of the surprised yell he'd given, and sprang apart with the guiltiest looks on their faces that he'd ever seen.

"It's not what it looks like!" Fili exclaimed, a wild look in his eyes crystal blue eyes. Their hair looked damp and tangled, which he hadn't really noticed when they'd first gotten home, so it was clear they'd been out in the rain. He didn't even want to know what they'd been doing out there.

"Oh, then what is it?" He couldn't believe that Bilbo had been right the whole time.

"We were just… oh, you know… getting to know each other better?" Fili murmured, growing more and more red in the face with each word.

"Getting to know each other better? Don't lie to me, boy. That's the worst excuse I've ever heard in my many years."

"Oh, both of you get over yourselves," Kili laughed, seemingly the only moderately-comfortable person in the room. Thorin was sort of impressed. "Uncle, stop talking like you've been alive for two hundred years. Fili, stop lying to yourself. We were having a hot and steamy make out session and you know it."

Fili and Thorin both looked like they wanted to die, but Kili's expression barely even wavered. Where he was normally a pretty shy boy, he clearly had no shame in this situation. Fili, on the other hand, looked like he was ready to jump off of a cliff into a pool of angry sharks.

"And, uhm, how long has this been going on?" Thorin questioned, motioning between the two of them.

Kili shrugged. "If I'm being honest, it's been going on ever since we first met. Sure, we danced around each other for a while, but the attraction was always there."

"It's been going on for a couple of weeks… kind of," Fili said, shaking his head at Kili, obviously embarrassed.

"Well then," Thorin spoke. He had no idea how to even respond, let alone say anything worthy of the situation. He wasn't disturbed by the fact they they were family, because he was fully aware that the two didn't share any blood, and he also wasn't upset by the fact they were both men, considering he too was gay, but something about it gave him the chills. Maybe it was just because they were both like sons to him, and walking in on such a steamy situation was in no way comfortable for him.

"I just came up to tell you we're going to dinner," he eventually continued, unable to make direct eye contact with either boy. "So… I suggest you both put shirts on and come downstairs as soon as possible, or else Bilbo might have all three of our heads.

Both of the boys nodded quickly and made to get dressed, and Fili was grabbing shirts of his own for both of them when the lights flicked and died, plunging them into absolute darkness. Even though it was only early evening, the storm had cast a heavy darkness on everything to the point where it appeared to be the middle of the night.

"Are you two okay?" Thorin whispered, unsure of why he felt the need to be so quiet.

"We're fine," came Fili's voice. "I'm not sure if my shirt is on correctly, but it feels right."

"Be careful going downstairs. We have a fire going, so it should be a little easier to see down there, but that won't be of any help if you break your heads open on your way."

The three of them began exiting the room in a jumbled mess, feeling along the walls to find their way out and down the stairs. It wasn't so dark that they wouldn't be able to somewhat see where they were going, but since they hadn't had any time to adjust, it was proving quite difficult.

"I see we have a power outage," Bilbo greeted them as they stumbled off of the stairs and into the sitting room, flustered and more than a little confused. "How convenient that I had this fire going."

"Convenient, indeed," Thorin coughed out, still feeling uncomfortable. He also felt as if Bilbo would be able to see in his expression that he had witnessed the boys together, and he wasn't quite ready to admit that he was wrong. "Do you think it's just us?"

"Oh, I doubt it. That storm looks quite nasty. Perhaps we should just stay inside and find something quick to eat. Driving in this weather is probably not such a great idea," the little man replied, standing up and heading towards the kitchen. "You three get settled in. I'm going to go put on some water for more tea."

"If the power's out, how is he supposed to boil water? We have an electric stove." Kili questioned, obviously confused.

"It's Bilbo. He'll find a way," Fili mumbled, as if it was obvious.

"I suppose we should get comfortable," Thorin grumbled, sitting back down in his usual armchair. "I feel as though it's going to be a very long night."

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**Let me know what you guys think. As always, I'm open for suggestions, and reviews are very appreciated!**

**I love you all so much and thanks for reading and all of your support!**


	18. Involved

**Ahhhhhh! I'm so sorry for not updating. I've been procrastinating lately, and honestly, I've been a complete mess! I need to pull back on the reigns and take control of my life once more. It is just getting out of control.**

**Anywho. This chapter was supposed to have a second part from Fili's point of view, but I felt so bad for not updating that I just decided to post this for now. Hopefully it's not too short. It's also not the best chapter ever, but I hope you guys enjoy it. I'd love to hear some feedback when it's all said and done. Thanks! And I love all of you!**

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Chapter 18

Involved

_Kili_

Kili only felt slightly stupid as he watched Bilbo place the tea kettle over the licking flames in the fireplace. Of course the stove wasn't the only way to heat water, but the three men sitting around, watching as Bilbo worked to give them a warm, comforting beverage, clearly didn't think out of the box too often. The brunette tried not to dwell on the thought for too long.

Everyone remained silent, staring at the fire until the water began to boil and the tea kettle let out an obnoxious whistle. Then Bilbo poured the steaming stuff into four cups, over teabags, and dispersed the drinks out to everyone, all of them muttering a soft 'thank you' in return.

Kili clutched his cup in both hands, soaking up as much warmth as he could. He still felt a bit chilled after being in those cold, wet clothes, but there was still a feeling like fire flowing through his veins, which spiked every time he stole a glance over at Fili.

"So," Bilbo began, sitting back down in his own chair, breaking the silence. "This is the perfect chance for some family bonding! Anything interesting happen today?"

The other three men all glanced at one another, sharing uncomfortable looks. Nobody was sure how to respond to that. Sure, interesting things had definitely happened. Did they want to talk about it? Not exactly.

"I would normally take that as a no," Bilbo continued, when nobody decided to reply, "but seeing as you've gone completely red in the face, Thorin, I'm assuming that's not the case." He finished with a smirk.

"I actually had a perfectly normal day," Thorin responded, avoiding eye contact. He was clearly uncomfortable, his head hung low as he stared intently at his tea. Now that Kili was really looking at his uncle, he could indeed see the dark red color that was brushing across his fair skin.

The small man snorted, clearly disbelieving. "I don't believe that for a second. Come on - spill. What happened that has you in such a state?"

"Nothing."

"Thorin." Bilbo pressed on. He was clearly having a good time pestering his husband.

Kili chose that moment to say, "It might be because he walked in on Fili and myself in a compromising position."

The was a very, very short silence - a sort of 'calm before the storm' - and then everyone spoke at once.

"HA! I _told _you!" Bilbo said.

"It's not what you think!" Fili pleaded for the second time that night.

"That's a lie!" Thorin all but shouted.

Utter chaos broke out, and Bilbo and Kili simply grinned through the whole thing. At one point Fili gave up, since nobody was listening to him, and Kili was afraid the poor guy would suffer from a hemorrhage any moment, due to how red and strained he looked.

Bilbo and Thorin continued to argue, Kili throwing in random words now and then, just to stoke the fire. Normally he wouldn't like being talked about, especially when it came to his love life, but he was, for some reason, enjoying this immensely. He figured part of it was due to the fact that they weren't worried so much about him as they were each other, and the other part was because he trusted and loved this group of people completely, which he'd never really experienced before.

The shouting match didn't seem like it was anywhere near an end when Fili seemingly decided enough was enough. The conversation was clearly too much for him, and to everyone's utter shock, the blonde stood from his chair and growled a firm, "Enough."

The two older men instantly shut up, and Kili stared up at the older boy with wide eyes - half shocked, half turned on.

"Yes, the two of us are involved with one another," Fili continued, almost causing Kili to snort with laughter at his word choice, "But I don't see why we have to make such a big deal out of it. We don't share any blood, and we weren't even raised together. I think this is a good thing for me. He makes me happy, so you both should just learn to accept it." He finished quickly and took a few deep breaths, having slightly run out of air.

"Fili, we aren't upset," Bilbo spoke, before giving Thorin a stern look. "At least, I'm not. Actually, I was quite shocked at first, but after thinking on it, I quite like the idea. Now I won't have to worry about either of you bringing strange boys over."

"I agree," Thorin nodded, sounding genuine, rather than just agreeing for the benefit of not getting in trouble with his husband.

"How did you even find out, Bilbo?" Kili asked, quirking an eyebrow. "How long have you known?"

Bilbo waved his hand about, dismissively. "Just a couple of weeks. I came in one day while you two were napping, and I just had a… feeling."

"And you didn't even question us about it?" Fili countered.

The small man crossed his arms over his chest and gave the blonde a warm smile. "I knew you'd come to us on your own time. I wasn't going to pester you about it. You're an adult."  
Fili muttered under his breath, something about not being treated as such. Kili was still feeling rather amused by the whole situation but kind of wished Fili would calm down and take a seat.

"Although," Bilbo continued, crossing his arms and now eyeing the young boys with a very serious stare, "if either of you do anything stupid and hurt one or the other, I will personally deal with it - and none too kindly."

Kili smiled at Bilbo's words, warmed by the fact that he cared so much about them and was so accepting. "That's not going to happen. We promise. Right, Fee?"  
Fili nodded in response, but there was a slight strain to his expression. His full lips were pulled into a thin, white line, and the muscles in his jaw and shoulders looked tense. Kili watched as a bead of sweat trickled down the blonde's temple and the side of his face, and it was by no means hot in the house. In fact, it was fairly cold.

"Fili?" he questioned out of concern. "What's wrong?"

Fili didn't respond, but swallowed slowly and let out a shaky breath.

Thorin stood and moved towards Fili. He pushed the youth back into his chair, whispering for him to sit down, and then said, "Is it the withdrawals?"

Fili nodded.

"You need a drink," Bilbo spoke, hopping up to head into the kitchen. They had a liquor cabinet that remained locked at all times, and the location of the key to it was completely unknown to Fili.

"I don't want a drink," he pleaded, looking up at Thorin with wet eyes. Kili wished there was something he could do to comfort him but figured he'd leave it to his family for now. They knew how to deal with this sort of thing, having done it before.

"You need one," Thorin grumbled softly, the deep, smooth sound of his voice soothing the blonde. "You can't go cold turkey on alcohol. You know that. It can kill you, and not to mention, it gives you horrendous mood swings. You need to take this slowly."

"I know," Fili broke eye contact with Thorin to stare down at his lap, tears now spilling silently down his pale cheeks. Kili silently wondered how things had managed to go bad so quickly but knew it wouldn't last long. He simply wished he could understand exactly what Fili was going through and help him fight it.

Bilbo returned moments later with a small wine glass, filled about halfway with a blood-red liquid. "Here, drink this," he spoke, handing the glass to Fili.

Fili stared at it for a moment, clearly hesitant to drink the poison his body so craved, but eventually tipped it back and drained the glass.

"This is so embarrassing," he complained, handing the glass back to Bilbo, his face painted a light red that was even noticeable in the soft firelight. The tears had stopped, and his face now just looked wet and blotchy, but Kili thought he looked as irresistible as ever.

"Don't be embarrassed," Bilbo smiled, giving his arm a light rub. "We aren't judging you. We are all here to help you through this."

"I know," Fili replied with a small, relieved laugh. "You guys are the best." He turned his head to give Kili a smile that was so filled with affection that it made the brunette blush like a version lass - which he practically was. "And I think I'm going to turn in early," the blonde continued, looking back at his fathers, who were still looming over him worriedly. "Sorry to ruin the night."

"Don't you worry about it," Bilbo said. "Are you not hungry, though?"

"Not really," Fili responded, standing up once more. "But the drink did make me feel better. Thank you."

Both of the older men gave Fili a hug, and just as Thorin released him and he turned to leave the room, Kili said, "I think I'll head that way as well. It was a pretty long day."

As he stood from his armchair, Bilbo gave him a knowing look, one eyebrow lifted high, and Kili almost laughed. "Don't worry," Kili assured him. "Nothing bad will happen to your son."

The small, curly-haired man chuckled and moved to give Kili a pat on the cheek. "You're our son as well. Now, off to bed with the both of you. I don't think Thorin will complain about having a peaceful night in without you two troublemakers."  
Thorin, who'd now gone back to his place by the fire, nodded in agreement, a dramatic sigh escaping his lips. Fili and Kili both chuckled lightly before saying goodnight and heading towards the staircase together.

Kili was honestly planning on sleeping in his own bed, but as he stopped outside his bedroom door, a roll of thunder was unleashed, so loud that it seemed to shake the whole house, and seconds later a crack of lightning reigned down, lighting the entire hallway. Kili reached out and grabbed Fili's wrist to keep him from walking passed to his own room.

"Kili, what is it?" he questioned after turning and seeing the terrified look on Kili's face.

Kili felt himself slipping back into his shy-mode, and he looked at Fili with a small blush on his cheeks. "Uhm… Uh, I've never done too well in thunderstorms, and I hate to ask, but…"

He trailed off, finding it hard to continue, but Fili seemed to understand what he was getting at. "Come on," the blonde smiled, lacing his fingers with Kili's, and pulled him further down the hallway to his bedroom. Kili couldn't begin to express how grateful he was, so he decided on keeping his mouth shut as he let Fili pull him along.

Fili's room was almost too dark to see anything, but after a bit of fumbling, Fili was able to find a box of matches and a candle and gave the room a bit of light with the small flame it produced. It gave the atmosphere a romantic feel, and the light reflected perfectly off of the stars painted on the ceiling.

"I should've grabbed some pajamas," Kili says, looking down at his still-damp jeans and Fili's shirt that he was wearing.

"Well you can wear the shirt to bed," Fili said, pulling out a couple pairs of clean boxers and some pajama pants. "And you can borrow a pair of underwear and some pants," he continued, handing said items to the brunette.

"Okay," Kili swallowed, taking the items out of his hands and clutched them to his chest, staring nervously. "Do you want me to change in the bathroom?"

Fili laughed and turned around, his own clothing in hand. "I won't look if you don't look."

Kili eyed the blonde for a moment and then turned his back towards him, agreeing quietly. He didn't understand why he was suddenly feeling so shy, since he'd been ready to rip the blonde's clothes off earlier, but he couldn't think of an explanation.

He quickly pulled off his wet pants and slid on the soft, dry ones, chuckling quietly at his own bashfulness, and turned to Fili to say something smart, but instead let out a small gasp when he got an eyeful completely bare backside, not one piece of clothing obscuring his view. Kili wasn't sure why the blonde had taken off his shirt, but since he'd only ever sent the older boy sleep without one, he assumed it was a normal thing. He was obviously in the process of figuring out whether the underwear he was clutching were inside-out or not, and the brunette took the moment to ogle Fili's perfectly muscled, compact body, from his strong, broad shoulders, all the way down to his toned calves, with of course a bit of lingering on his perfect, pert derrière. Kili had to stop himself from drooling and turned quickly away when Fili bent over to pull on his clothes.

"You good?" Fili eventually asked, and Kili said a quick yes, hoping he'd managed to school the look on his face to something neutral.

They turned back to look at each other, and Kili was sure that his face was beet-red, but if Fili noticed, he didn't say anything about it.

The two made haste to crawl into bed, curling up together under the mound of blankets Fili always slept under. Kili, finding his courage again, pulled Fili closer to him, and the blonde rested his head on Kili's chest, the warmth from his cheek radiating through the thin shirt he was wearing.

"So why do thunderstorms bother you so much?" Fili rumbled, giving Kili a squeeze with the arm he had draped over the brunette.

"When I was little, living in the orphanage, they used to give me the worst nightmares," Kili responded. "I always felt so alone in that place, and I suppose I still haven't gotten over it. I know, I'm kind of a baby."

"You're not a baby at all." Fili rubbed a soothing hand over Kili's chest and shut his eyes, smiling sleepily. "Tell me about it."

"The orphanage?"

"Yeah."

Kili looked down at the top of the blonde's head. "Well, what do you want to know? The food was terrible and the children were even worse."

Fili's laughter radiated through Kili's whole body, and his arm tightened even further around him. "What was wrong with the children."

"They were so homely," Kili sighed. "And mean. I had a couple of friends, when I was really young, but once they realized what a loser I was, they ditched me and made new, cooler friends. Then I was pretty antisocial until I met Ori at school, and even then I was alone at the orphanage. I got pretty good grades, though, with all that time for homework."

Fili didn't speak for a long time, still rubbing idly at Kili's chest. His breathing was evening out and Kili figured he was almost asleep and wouldn't reply, until he said, "You're not a baby. And you're not a loser."

"Sure."

"You're not," Fili spoke firmly. His hand came to a stop and clenched into a fist. "You've got to stop talking about yourself that way."

"Like you're any better," Kili retorted.

Fili pushed himself up, supporting himself on his elbow, to stare up at the brunette teen. "Both of us have negative views of ourselves, and I know that I do it too. Hell, I'm even worse, but that has to stop now. We'll always feel depressed if we don't buck up and learn to like ourselves."

"You're right," Kili said, giving Fili a small grin. "We will stop. From here on out, nothing but optimism and love!"

Fili laid back down, grinning widely, and nodded in agreement, the scruff on his cheeks snagging on Kili's shirt. "Good night, Kee," he added, tilting his head up to snag a quick kiss from Kili.

"Night, Fee," he responded once they'd settled in and both shut their eyes. A rumble of thunder sounded overhead, and Kili smiled softly to himself.

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**Poor little Orphan Kili.**

**So. Things will start to get interesting again in the next couple of chapters. Fili and Kili will finally go on that date, and some creepy notes might also make an appearance (ooooo foreshadowing!)**

**As always, Comments, Suggestions and Critique are most appreciated! Even if it's just a quick hello! I love hearing from you guys.**


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